COCO GAUFF RUES ‘TOUGH’ DEFEAT TO CAROLINE GARCIA IN LAST 16 OF MIAMI OPEN – ‘EVERY LOSS WEIGHS HEAVY’

Coco Gauff’s hopes of winning her home tournament were ended by Caroline Garcia, who upset the world No. 3 in the last 16 of the Miami Open. Garcia rallied after losing the second set to knock out Gauff, who has not made it past the fourth round in Miami. Gauff said it was a “tough loss” and said she felt she “could have done better”. Garcia next plays Danielle Collins.

Coco Gauff admitted “every loss weighs heavy” after her Miami Open campaign was ended in the last 16 by Caroline Garcia.
The world No. 3 was beaten 6-3 1-6 6-2 as Garcia claimed her first top-10 win since November 2022.

It is one of only two WTA 1000 events, along with Madrid, where she hasn’t reached at least one quarter-final.
“I think honestly it’s just tough matches over the years,’’ Gauff said about her Miami results.
“I feel like I know how to play with home pressure, especially after the whole US swing last year, so I didn’t feel any nerves coming in today or at all this week.
“I think I’m the type of person every loss kind of weighs on me heavy, especially one like today where I felt like I could have done better, and I felt like I had the match in control, especially after the second [set].
“Honestly, if anything, it kind of helps being home so I can just drive and be home and be in my own bed.’’
After losing the first set, Gauff looked to have turned things around in a one-sided second set that saw her hit eight winners to one from Garcia.
But the key moment in the match came early in the third as Garcia saved four break points in the opening game.

Garcia held and then broke Gauff in the next game, before using the momentum to pull clear.
“It is a tough loss,” added Gauff.
“It was basically an up-and-down match. She played aggressive, which I knew coming in, and I think it was really important for me to just change the height of the ball.
“I did that well for the majority of the second set. And then starting off the third with an early break, I think just completely changed the momentum.”

Despite the defeat, Gauff took positives from one aspect of her game.
“I do think one positive is the serve. I got broken a lot today, [but] I don’t think it was because of my serving.
“I went from hitting 17 double faults in Indian Wells to I think only, like, two or three today. So I think that’s something that can continue to improve, but it did in a short amount of time.”
Gauff is set to start her clay season in Stuttgart in April.