Coco Gauff (United States) lost to Donna Vekic (Croatia) in the third round of the Paris Olympics Women’s Singles. Gauff was one of the favorites to reach the final in singles this week. This might have been one of her worst losses as she had a great chance to win a medal. She threw away a 5-2 lead in the first set with multiple set-point opportunities. This is a great win for Vekic, who always had the pace to force errors out of Gauff’s forehand, which she did. Olympics quarterfinals to back up that Wimbledon semifinals isn’t too shabby and she has a great shot at doing even more here.
Gauff had an incident in the second set with the umpire where she did not agree with the call. From there on, she completely collapsed mentally. A huge part of being a professional athlete is learning to control your reactions to bad calls against you, whether they are real or just perceived. Players have to learn to calm themselves down after these moments and either set it aside mentally or use the perceived injustice as fuel to finish out the match strongly.
Gauff had the honour of carrying the flag of the United States alongside LeBron James. She had huge expectations on her shoulders and maybe the pressure got to her as she played far from her best level. This is the second big tournament in a row where Gauff can not meet her hopes and expectations. Mentally, she seemed worn down by the pressure.
Coco Gauff’s Loss Open Opportunities for Others
Gauff’s loss has opened up the draw for others and given them a golden opportunity to go deep this week. One of Maria Sakkari (Greece), Donna Vekic (Croatia), and Marta Kostyuk (Ukraine) will arrive in the semifinals to fight for a medal. It’s a great opportunity for all three, particularly Sakkari if she can hold it together mentally. Sakkari has been great so far and has the level to beat anyone on her day. This is her best chance to win a medal for Greece.
The last four times someone defeated Gauff at Roland Garros, they went on to win the title. Donna Vekic has never played this well on clay and was the better player against Gauff after being down in the first set until the end of the match. She has had such a topsy-turvy career progression and needed to fight lots of injuries. She has been in great form since Eastbourne and usually saves her best when playing for Croatia. Vekic always had the game but the improvement in mental strength can result in a medal this week.
The American Will Shift Her Focus on Doubles
With the loss in singles, Gauff will shift her focus to doubles where she has a great chance as well. She is playing in the women’s doubles and mixed doubles competitions. She is partnering Jessica Pegula in the women’s doubles and they are the #1 seeds. It’s her best shot to win Gold. Gauff is a former world No.1 in doubles and has won the French Open at this venue. Pegula is also a strong doubles player, being a former world No.1 and a finalist at the French Open. They have experience playing with each other before and it showed in their first-round win where they demolished the opponents.
Coco Gauff is partnering with Taylor Fritz in the mixed doubles. Fritz is not known for his doubles prowess but his big serve and improvement on clay make him a strong partner. With just four rounds needed to win the Gold Medal in the mixed event, Gauff and Fritz have a shot to make it happen. Gauff’s loss in singles will hopefully calm her and let her play with less pressure.
Main Photo Main Photo Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports
