The 2025 Wimbledon Championships delivered a stunning blow to Coco Gauff, the world No. 2 and recent French Open champion, as she suffered a shocking first-round defeat to Ukraine’s Dayana Yastremska on No. 1 Court. The 7-6(3), 6-1 loss, marked by nine double faults and 29 unforced errors, was Gauff’s earliest Grand Slam exit since Wimbledon 2023, making her only the third woman in the Open Era to fall in the first round at SW19 after winning Roland Garros. In a tearful post-match press conference, the 21-year-old American expressed deep disappointment, admitting, “I don’t like losing,” while hinting at frustrations with her coaching team’s lack of direction during the match. Her candid reflections and the lessons learned from this upset signal a pivotal moment in her quest to conquer Wimbledon’s elusive grass courts.
Gauff entered the tournament with high expectations, fresh off her second Grand Slam title at the 2025 French Open, where she defeated Aryna Sabalenka. Her aggressive, topspin-heavy game thrived on clay, but the transition to grass proved daunting. “I just feel like the surface, I maybe could have used more matches,” Gauff said, pinpointing her lack of grass-court preparation as a key factor. After a first-round loss in Berlin to Wang Xinyu, Gauff had hoped to find her rhythm at Wimbledon, where she burst onto the scene in 2019 by defeating Venus Williams as a 15-year-old. Yet, Yastremska, ranked No. 42, exploited Gauff’s vulnerabilities, particularly her serve, which faltered with a 45% first-serve percentage and critical double faults in the first-set tiebreak. “I couldn’t find my footing out there today,” Gauff admitted, giving credit to Yastremska’s aggressive groundstrokes and 16 winners. “I was really on fire,” Yastremska declared, her confidence bolstered by a recent final in Nottingham and a quarterfinal run in Eastbourne.
The match, played under the roof on No. 1 Court due to a late schedule change from Centre Court, saw Gauff struggle to adapt to the slick, low-bouncing grass. Her topspin forehand, a weapon on clay, was neutralized by Yastremska’s skidding shots, which rushed her into errors. “I felt like mentally I was a little bit overwhelmed with everything that came afterwards,” Gauff said, reflecting on the whirlwind of media duties and celebrations following her Paris triumph. The tight three-week turnaround between Roland Garros and Wimbledon left her underprepared, a challenge she vowed to address. “It’s the first time in this experience of coming off a win and having to play Wimbledon. I definitely learned a lot of what I would and would not do again,” she said, suggesting a potential shift to playing more grass-court warm-up events like Bad Homburg or Eastbourne.
Gauff’s frustration extended to her coaching team, led by Matt Daly and Jean-Christophe Faurel, who joined her after parting ways with Brad Gilbert post-2024 US Open. During the match, Gauff felt unsupported, stating, “I felt like I wanted more direction from the box.” Unlike previous instances where her coaches provided tactical guidance, she sensed a disconnect, noting, “I felt today I don’t think we were all in sync.” Her emotional plea echoed a similar moment at Wimbledon 2024, when she publicly urged Gilbert for advice during a loss to Emma Navarro. “I’m sure my team and everyone’s going to tell me, ‘You did well at Roland-Garros, don’t be so upset,’” Gauff said, anticipating their response but struggling to mask her disappointment. Her parents, Candi and Corey, and fitness coach Richard Woodroof were in her player’s box, but her father’s absence from coaching duties—due to his self-described need to “mature” as a parent—added to the sense of isolation she felt on court.
Despite the setback, Gauff remained philosophical, emphasizing the depth of the WTA Tour. “I’ve played so many Slams where anybody can win,” she said, dismissing the significance of her No. 2 seeding. “The seed is just a number… There’s no easy draw.” Her defeat was part of a chaotic day at Wimbledon, with top seeds like Jessica Pegula, Zheng Qinwen, and Alexander Zverev also falling. Former coach Brad Gilbert, reacting to the wave of upsets, remarked on X that they were “contagious,” noting the wide-open draw. Gauff, however, saw a silver lining: “I’m not gonna dwell on this too long because I want to do well at the US Open.” With the hard-court season ahead, including a chance to defend her 2023 title, Gauff’s resilience and willingness to evolve—perhaps by tweaking her forehand or serving mechanics—signal her determination to turn this heartbreak into a catalyst for growth.
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