Coco Gauff has spent her early twenties doing what most players never manage at all: winning majors on more than one surface. The American claimed the US Open in 2023 and the French Open in 2025, and added the year-end WTA Finals title in 2024 — a résumé that, at 22, already marks her as one of the defining players of her generation.
2026 has been a season of steady late-stage runs. Gauff reached her first Wimbledon semifinal and the US Open semifinals, and in August won the Cincinnati Open, beating Jessica Pegula 6-2, 6-4 in the final for her first title since Wuhan in October 2025. Both of her biggest late-summer losses came against the new world No. 1, Elena Rybakina, who beat her in the Toronto and US Open semifinals after dropping the first set each time. The profile is an established champion in the sport’s top four, with the serve still the variable that decides how often she converts.
Quick facts
- Full name: Cori Dionne “Coco” Gauff
- Nationality: United States (born Atlanta, Georgia; based in Delray Beach, Florida)
- Born: March 13, 2004
- Height: 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
- Turned pro: 2018
- Plays: Right-handed, two-handed backhand
- Coach: Jean-Christophe Faurel
- Career titles: 12, including two majors, the 2024 WTA Finals and four WTA 1000 events
- Identity: Elite athlete and competitor with a counter-punching base and improving offense
Season snapshot — September 24, 2026
- Next events: Seeded fourth at the China Open in Beijing (September 30 to October 11), which she won in 2024, then the Wuhan Open, where she is the defending champion
- 2026 title: Cincinnati Open (WTA 1000), beating Jessica Pegula 6-2, 6-4 in the final — her second Cincinnati title after 2023
- 2026 Grand Slams: Australian Open quarterfinal; Roland Garros third round (lost to Anastasia Potapova as defending champion); Wimbledon semifinal, her first, after beating Pegula in the quarterfinals; US Open semifinal (lost to Elena Rybakina 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 as the No. 4 seed)
- Other 2026 results: Toronto semifinal (lost to Rybakina 5-7, 6-2, 6-2)
- Career prize money: More than US$32 million
This snapshot is dated and will change. The career record elsewhere on this page does not.
Game overview
Gauff wins with speed, defense, and competitive resolve more than raw power. She covers the court as well as anyone in the game, turns defense into offense, and rarely beats herself mentally. Her two majors came on hard court and clay, and her 2026 Wimbledon semifinal completed a set of deep runs on all three surfaces.
Playing style and strengths
Movement and defense. Gauff’s court coverage is elite; she retrieves balls others put away and extends rallies until opponents over-press.
Forehand and aggression, improving. Long a relative weakness, her forehand has become a more reliable offensive tool, letting her dictate rather than only absorb.
Big-match temperament. She has won a major from a set down and closed out finals against the world’s best — the competitive nerve is a genuine asset.
Pressure points and vulnerabilities
- The serve: double faults remain a recurring vulnerability under pressure
- Big servers who absorb her early pressure: Rybakina beat her from a set down in both the Toronto and US Open semifinals
- Converting semifinals into titles in a deep, top-heavy field
- Form dips when the forehand timing deserts her
Career milestones
- 2023: Cincinnati title, then a maiden Grand Slam title at the US Open, beating Aryna Sabalenka in the final
- 2024: China Open title in Beijing and the WTA Finals title; career-high ranking of World No. 2
- 2025: Second major at the French Open, again over Sabalenka in the final; Wuhan title, her third at WTA 1000 level
- 2026: Second Cincinnati title, the first WTA 1000 event she has won twice; first Wimbledon semifinal
Grand Slam record in context
Gauff’s major record is unusually complete for her age: a hard-court Slam, a clay-court Slam, and now semifinals at Wimbledon and the US Open in the same summer. The 2026 majors started poorly, with a Melbourne quarterfinal and a third-round loss defending her Paris title, then improved sharply on grass and in New York. Both semifinal losses were close, and the second came against a player who went on to win the title.
What to watch next
- Beijing and Wuhan — a former Beijing champion and the defending Wuhan champion, with significant points to protect in China
- The WTA Finals — the 2024 champion’s bid for a second year-end title at Indian Wells, November 8 to 15
- The serve — whether technical work translates to fewer double faults in tight moments
Related reading
- Coco Gauff Wins Cincinnati Open 2026, Beats Pegula 6-2 6-4
- Jessica Pegula Profile
- WTA 1000 Guide
- Grand Slams Explained
- ATP Finals and WTA Finals Guide
