Partly cloudy skies this morning will give way to occasional showers during the afternoon. High 62F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%..
Rain showers this evening with overcast skies overnight. Low around 50F. Winds S at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.
Updated: January 27, 2026 @ 4:00 am
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Coco Gauff smashed her racket into the concrete floor once for every time she dropped serve, and another one for good measure, after her Australian Open quarterfinal loss to Elina Svitolina on Tuesday.
The third-seeded Gauff, a two-time major winner, struggled with her serve and recorded five double-faults in the first set, when she was broken four times.
There were two more service breaks in the second set and, once the match was over — in 59 minutes — Gauff stayed composed as she left the center court and tried to find somewhere quiet to vent her frustrations.
Turns out, there's pretty much no place in Rod Laver Arena except for the locker rooms that is beyond the scope of the cameras. So, the seven times she pounded her racket into a concrete ramp were far from a private moment following her 6-1, 6-2 defeat.
“Certain moments — the same thing happened to Aryna (Sabalenka) after I played her in the final of the U.S. Open — I feel like they don’t need to broadcast,” Gauff said in her post-match news conference. “I tried to go somewhere where I thought there wasn’t a camera because I don’t necessarily like breaking rackets.
“I broke one racket (at the) French Open, I think, and I said I would never do it again on court because I don’t feel like that’s a good representation. So, yeah, maybe some conversations can be had.”
Gauff hit just three clean winners across 15 games, made 26 unforced errors and won 2 of 11 points on her second serve. She got 74% of her first serves into play, but only won 41% of those points.
It was an usually bad day for a player who made her Grand Slam debut at 15 and won her first major, the 2023 U.S. Open, at 19. She's still only 21.
Gauff said she felt it was better to shatter a racket than to take out any frustrations on her support team.
“They’re good people. They don’t deserve that, and I know I’m emotional,” Gauff said. “So, yeah, I just took the minute to go and do that.
“I don’t think it’s a bad thing. Like I said, I don’t try to do it on court in front of kids and things like that, but I do know I need to let out that emotion.”
More AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
Copyright 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
What the Constitution Means to Me Read moreWhat The Constitution Means To Me
Join us for community fun! Free antique and collectible appraisals by Clars Auction. Over 30… Read moreMillbrae Senior Showcase
Imagine the rock and roll of Jimi Hendrix, the wild abandon of Janis Joplin’s vocals, and th… Read morePacifica Performances presents…Dirty Cello
Dirk van Ulden said:
Dirk van Ulden said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.