WTA star Coco Gauff’s US Open campaign came to an abrupt halt with an unexpected defeat at the hands of Naomi Osaka. Her persistent struggles with serve issues remained a pressing challenge, creating a direct space for the renowned mentor and biomechanics coach Gavin MacMillan to enter the team.
Addressing the situation, Gauff has now clarified MacMillan’s role in her team moving forward. Here’s what she had to say about the future of their partnership.
How Will Gavin Macmillan Help Coco Gauff Get Over Her Difficulties?
Coco Gauff hired biomechanics expert Gavin MacMillan in August 2025 to fix her inconsistent serve and to reduce double faults, a weakness that often hindered her performance. MacMillan, who helped Aryna Sabalenka rebuild her motion, used data and technique adjustments to make Gauff’s serve more sustainable. However, according to the former US Open champion, the process is still ongoing.
On being asked about what she feels about Gavin’s impact on her performance and if he’s continuing the work during her presence in China, Gauff said:
“I’m still working with Gavin, but he’s not here because we started last minute so he had other plans for this part of the year. We’ll be working with each other right when I get home from here. But it was a good learning experience.”
“For me it was a tough challenge I think mentally more so than anything just, like, kind of losing trust in a lot of things, trying to find that in that tournament.”
Coco Gauff is all set to return to Beijing this September as the defending champion. She headlines a stacked WTA 1000 field that will also feature top talents such as Iga Świątek, Amanda Anisimova, Jessica Pegula, Mirra Andreeva, Jasmine Paolini, Elena Rybakina, and Naomi Osaka.
Gauff Admits to Considering the Beijing Open as a Practice Event
Coco Gauff’s 2025 season was nothing less than a rollercoaster ride. Despite struggling with serve issues and multiple double faults, she managed to add a second Grand Slam title to her portfolio.
However, she seems to feel she’s had enough for the season. During a recent press conference, the WTA star revealed that she sees her Beijing Open participation as a “practice” session without much weight.
“Although technically I’m the defending champion [in Beijing], it doesn’t feel like that at all. I don’t want to say ‘not care’ because obviously I’m not playing a tournament and trying to lose or anything… But yeah, there is definitely a weight that you kind of just don’t care in a way, especially when you’ve had like a good moment of the season. I think winning the French Open helped me take that weight off less,” she said.
“I don’t know how I feel right now. I definitely feel a lot lighter. It feels, again, like a practice tournament. So we’ll see how it goes.”
Set to kick off on September 24, Coco Gauff’s opening-round rival is yet to be determined, as she remains seeded second in the event.
