"Empty stadium, terrible standard" - Fans shocked by 'abysmal' Coco Gauff vs Madison Keys battle in French Open QF

The quality of the highly anticipated blockbuster clash between Coco Gauff and Madison Keys in the quarterfinals of the 2025 French Open has left fans disappointed. While many expected the match would be worthy of being placed in the night session, the high number of unforced errors has upset them.

Both women have been in fine form in the 2025 season and set up an all-American clash in the quarterfinal. However, there could be one winner, and it was Coco Gauff, who turned the match around from a set down to win (6)6-7, 6-4, 6-1 after two hours and 11 minutes to reach the semifinal of the clay major for the second consecutive year.

What shocked the tennis fraternity the most was the fact that the two women hit a combined total of 101 unforced errors, 60 from Madison Keys and 41 from Coco Gauff, which was uncharacteristic of them. Fans on social media were shocked by the low quality of tennis on display by two of the finest talents in tennis and were also disappointed by the low attendance at this blockbuster clash.

"Empty stadium and terrible standard in the Keys/Gauff match #RolandGarros," the fan commented.

Another fan quipped that though many wanted this match to be placed in the night session, it lacked quality.

"'Keys and Gauff should be the night match!' Meanwhile they're having an abysmal-off," the fan quipped.

Here are some other reactions from tennis fans.

"Roof closed for this heavyweight QF duel at #rolandgarros between major champs Coco Gauff & Madison Keys. And as usual for the opening match at the #FrenchOpen a LOT of empty seats," a fan wrote.

"Another women’s French Open quarterfinal at 11am with a practically empty stadium. Gauff and Keys deserve better," a fan opined.

"The amount of unforced errors by both Coco Gauff and Madison Keys is mind boggling," a fan commented.

"The way gauff won this game only because of keys UEs and keys won all her points because of coco's UEs 💀💀💀💀," a fan mentioned.

"I do think that women’s matches are worthy of a night spot. I definitely do agree with Ons when, like, you feel what’s best for the fans, but I feel like we produce some high-quality tennis and we have some great stars on the women’s side who fans I’m sure would love to see," Gauff told reporters after her second-round win at the clay Major.

The lack of women's tennis in the night schedule has been a huge topic of discussion at the French Open, with many big names like Aryna Sabalenka having their say on the issue.

"I don’t think any girl - I mean, prove me wrong, but I don’t think anyone wants to play after the 8:15 pm match" - Coco Gauff

Coco Gauff - Source: Getty

After she comfortably kicked off her French Open campaign with a straight-set win over Olivia Gadecki, Coco Gauff was asked about the heavily discussed issue of the women's matches in the night session of the Paris Major. Gauff stated that she preferred getting done with her matches before the late hours and also felt most women would agree with her.

"I think here is a unique topic because there is only one slot at 8:15 pm. To be honest, I don’t think any girl - I mean, prove me wrong, but I don’t think anyone wants to play after the 8:15 pm match. I don’t know what the other girls would think, but I think most people would rather play before that. Maybe there’s a chance to put someone at 6:30 pm or 7:00 pm," Coco Gauff said.

However, Gauff later clarified that she also believed that women's tennis did have the quality to star in the main event night sessions at the French Open, agreeing with Ons Jabeur, who criticized the tournament for prioritizing men's matches over women's for the night sessions.