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Coco Gauff's former coach Brad Gilbert delivered a resounding reaction to the American's surprisingly dominant win over Iga Swiatek in the semifinals of the 2025 Madrid Open. The victory marked Gauff's maiden success against the Pole on clay.
On Thursday, May 2, Coco Gauff locked horns with Iga Swiatek on Estadio Manolo Santana, the iconic center court in Madrid's Caja Magica. The American came into the match trailing the Pole 3-11 in the pair's WTA Tour-level head-to-head, but she did come out on top on the last two occasions they faced each other (2024 WTA Finals and 2025 United Cup).
The five-time Major champion and former No. 1 was no match for Coco Gauff in the Spanish capital. The American fired six aces and registered a 75% win percentage on her second serve. She also engineered seven break point opportunities, converting five of them. The end result was a lopsided scoreline of 6-1, 6-1 in Gauff's favor.
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Brad Gilbert, who spearheaded Gauff's charge to her maiden Grand Slam title at the 2023 US Open, was thoroughly impressed with his former pupil's performance. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), the veteran coach wrote:
"Mighty impressive effort from Coco, absolutely hammers 🔨 Iga Pop for her 1st win on clay 🧱 and 3rd straight win overall"
Gilbert joined Gauff's coaching setup in the buildup to the 2023 US Open, and his appointment seemed to work wonders almost instantly. Under his famed tutelage, which most notably yielded six Major titles for the legendary Andre Agassi, Gauff flourished initially, winning the 2023 editions of the Washington Open, Cincinnati Open, and then the US Open.
However, in 2024, the American suffered a drastic dip in form and consistency, and following a rather forgettable US Open title defense, she chose to bring her collaboration with Gilbert to an end.
Interestingly, in the 2025 Madrid Open women's singles final, Gauff will be up against the player she defeated to win her first Grand Slam title.
Coco Gauff to take on reigning World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in Madrid Open final
Aryna Sabalenka, the WTA No. 1 and 2024 Madrid Open runner-up, awaits Coco Gauff in the women's singles final of this year's edition of the combined WTA 1000 and ATP Masters 1000 claycourt event. Sabalenka reached the final after registering wins against Anna Blinkova, Elise Mertens, Peyton Stearns, Marta Kostyuk, and Elina Svitolina.
The potentially thrilling contest is set to mark Sabalenka and Gauff's tenth WTA Tour-level clash. The American currently leads the pair's head-to-head 5-4, with her 2-6, 6-3, 6-2 comeback victory in the 2023 US Open final being her most high-profile win over the Belarusian so far.
Gauff also defeated Sabalenka 7-6(4), 6-3 in the semifinals of last year's WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The American would go on to win the prestigious year-end event after getting the better of Zheng Qinwen in the final.
