Don't believe the metric should be Majors: Mark Petchey defends calling Coco Gauff the best athlete in women's tennis history

Former British tennis player Mark Petchey has defended his bold claim that Coco Gauff is the best athlete in the history of women's tennis.

Gauff enjoyed a remarkable North-American swing, during which she won her maiden WTA 500 title at the Citi Open, followed by her first-ever WTA 1000 title at the Cincinnati Open, and capped it off by clinching her maiden Grand Slam title at the US Open.

In an episode of the Inside-In podcast, Mark Petchey lauded the 19-year-old's recent achievements, suggesting that winning her first Major title would enable her to play with greater freedom and thereby pose a significant threat to her opponents.

The Brit also hailed Coco Gauff as "the best women’s athlete to ever play tennis," ranking her ahead of 22-time Grand Slam champion Steffi Graf, whom he placed second.

Former American tennis player Tim Mayotte reacted to Petchey's comments on social media and stated that bestowing such a label upon the World No. 3 was a bit to soon.

"Yikes! Guys! Please! Its abit early. If she lost at the Open....," Mayotte posted on X.

Petchey, however, defended his comment and asserted that the designation of the best female athlete should not be linked to a player's Grand Slam success.

"Tim, I love your opinions about tennis firstly and because of that I wanted to reply. I was making the observation I believe Coco is the best female athlete I have ever seen. What does winning Majors have to do with that?" he posted.

He exemplified his point by citing Gael Monfils, stating that the Frenchman was widely regarded as the best athlete in men's tennis despite his lack of a Major title.

"When we talk about the best male tennis athletes most agree Gael Monfils is the best we have had recently. No one then starts talking about his lack of Majors but many agree he is arguably the best," he added.

Before signing off, Petchey reiterated his belief that using Grand Slam titles to determine the best athlete was not ideal. He also argued that Coco Gauff's US Open triumph, despite her "suboptimal" forehand, should further strenghten her case for being regarded as the greatest female athlete of all time.

"I don’t believe the metric for best ever athlete should be Majors. However, as you are someone who believes in technique as much as I do, isn’t the fact Coco won the US Open with a forehand, most agree is suboptimal in terms of technique, further testament to the argument she is could be the best tennis female athlete ever?" he said.

Coco Gauff set to lock horns with Ekaterina Alexandrova in China Open 1R

Coco Gauff

Coco Gauff is set to compete at the 2023 China Open, marking her first tournament as the reigning US Open champion. The American will lock horns with Ekaterina Alexandrova to continue her campaign at the WTA 1000 event.

Gauff and Alexandrova will play against each other for the third time, with their head-to-head currently tied at 1-1. Their most recent encounter came at the 2023 Berlin Open, with the Russian winning 6-4, 6-0.

Prior to her clash against Alexandrova, Coco Gauff enjoyed some quality time in Beijing, learning the art of calligraphy, listening to the oriental piano while sipping tea and visiting local attractions.