Coco Gauff claimed the Wuhan Open title earlier this month in stunning fashion, dominating the field without dropping a single set throughout the entire WTA 1000 tournament. Her flawless run, however, might never have happened if not for a bold decision she made back in August.
Between the Cincinnati Open and the U.S. Open, Gauff decided to part ways with her coach, Matt Daly, and brought in biomechanics specialist Gavin MacMillan.
The young American later explained that she made the abrupt change because MacMillan had become available, and she was ready to risk the remainder of her season to fix the persistent issues with her serve. That gamble has clearly paid off — since teaming up with MacMillan, Gauff has posted an impressive 12-2 record.
Just yesterday, MacMillan — the same biomechanics expert credited with improving Aryna Sabalenka’s serve — appeared on the Tennis Channel for an interview. Ironically, Gauff’s former coach Brad Gilbert was the one who asked him about his goals beyond simply reducing double faults.
MacMillan explained, “The main objective for Coco right now is to develop a reliable and effective kick serve. Once she can consistently execute that with confidence — and during the first round of her last tournament, she did exceptionally well — she actually went an entire match without recording a single double fault, which hasn’t happened in years.”
He continued, “After we establish that foundation, the next step is to work on generating more powerful and efficient first serves that combine both speed and spin. It’s not just about hitting the ball hard — if it’s flat, it becomes easy for opponents to attack. The key is to strike it with pace and spin so it jumps out of their strike zone.”
Drawing an analogy from another sport, MacMillan added, “It’s similar to baseball — a straight fastball won’t fool anyone; it needs movement. That’s essentially what we’re aiming for with her serve.”
A kick serve involves using topspin and an upward swing to produce a high, explosive bounce, and it’s typically used for second serves.
Currently ranked No. 3 in the WTA standings, Gauff holds an impressive 47-14 record this season with two titles to her name. Her final appearance of the year will be at the WTA Finals in Riyadh, where she’ll attempt to defend her crown against the top eight players in the world.
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