“It’s money” – Martina Navratilova boldly compares Coco Gauff to Novak Djokovic, highlights American’s ‘real weapon’ ahead of WTA Finals
Martina Navratilova predicted Coco Gauff’s chances of winning the year-end title at the WTA Finals, noting that she possesses an attribute similar to Novak Djokovic’s.
Gauff came fresh off her win at the Wuhan Open, defeating fellow American Jessica Pegula in all sets.
Coco Gauff, who reached a career-high of No. 2 on the WTA rankings, has had unmatched success in the hard-court tournaments. She triumphed at the Wuhan Open, earning her third WTA 1000 singles title since Venus Williams in 2015. The win also made her the first player to achieve her first nine hard-court finals.
The reigning French Open champion will now head to the WTA Finals, where she trounced Iga Swiatek in 2024, becoming the youngest player to win the year-end championships since Maria Sharapova in 2004. That win also made her the first US player to taste such success since Serena Williams in 2014.
Ahead of the year-end event, Martina Navratilova noted that she shares a quality with Djokovic, and if she figures out her serve properly, it could become her biggest weapon on the court. Predicting Coco Gauff’s chances of securing the year-end Championships, the Czech-American said:
“She’s played nine hard-court finals and won them all. That’s crazy. One of those was last year in Riyadh, so look out if she gets rolling again. Her backhand is like Djokovic’s — maybe with even more power. It’s money,” she said. (via WTA Tennis)
“When the serve is happening, it’s a real weapon, and I’m glad she’s figuring that out. Her movement is better than anybody else. She can always depend on that. It’s the one thing fully under her control. She knows she can run and defend no matter what. Then she manages the rest. When she comes forward, she has a very good volley and it’s hard to get the ball past her. She just won in Wuhan, so she should be confiden,” the 18-time Grand Slam winner added.
The WTA Finals will take place from November 1 to 8, 2025.
Coco Gauff enjoyed some downtime with her boyfriend Jalen Sera before the WTA Finals
Coco Gauff has been dating Jalen Sera for a couple of years and often spends time with each other, besides expressing love for each other on social media. After the two-time Major champion’s win at the Wuhan Open, she spent some downtime with her boyfriend, as posted by the latter on Instagram. The picture carousel included a slide that featured the couple sharing a frame, where Gauff made a pout face and Sera looked on in a green shirt.
“Living!” the caption read.
Gauff reciprocated the feelings, commenting:
“Living life with you >>>>”
Coco Gauff became the youngest woman to make three clay-court finals when she reached the French Open final round after Madrid and the Italian Open.
