World No. 3 Coco Gauff shared her thoughts on her second consecutive victory over Mirra Andreeva, achieved in less than two weeks. They had previously met in the quarterfinals in Madrid (where Gauff won 7/5, 6/1) and now in Rome (with scores of 6/4, 7/6(5)).
Asked if she noticed any changes in Andreeva`s tactics following their recent encounter in Madrid, Gauff replied: “I think she was trying to be more aggressive today. Playing someone again so soon after the last match is tough because you expect them to change things up. At the same time, you want to stick with what worked last time, but you know they`ll be anticipating exactly that. I was just trying to feel the game as the match progressed.”
When asked about her confidence level on clay, Gauff stated: “I feel very confident on clay. I think this surface suits my game style well. I would really love to win a big title on clay, simply because I enjoy it. My confidence is high, and I hope to go as far as possible.”
When asked if she had a preference for facing Aryna Sabalenka or Zheng Qinwen in the next round, Gauff replied: “Honestly, I don`t have a preference. Both opponents are very strong, and either match will be difficult. Perhaps I`d slightly prefer playing Aryna after our recent final in Madrid, just to try and get some revenge,” she added with a smile. “But Zheng will also be tough, so I truly have no preference.”
Regarding the significance of having a positive head-to-head record against frequent opponents, Gauff commented: “Honestly, I don`t pay too much attention to that statistic. Especially when playing younger opponents, because you know how quickly they can improve. I tend to compare myself to how I was at their age versus how I am now – there`s a huge difference. So yes, [a positive record] is nice, but on court, I always treat each match as a new challenge and expect my opponent to be even stronger than before,” she concluded at the press conference.
Rupert Hartwell