Coco Gauff has given her fans a light-hearted moment to laugh about after the American unintentionally hit a shot that almost knocked her physiotherapist off her seat. Gauff took to social media to amusingly apologize to her longtime physio for the unfortunate court mishap.
On Monday night, Coco Gauff entered the Arthur Ashe Stadium, hoping to make it to her third US Open quarterfinal. The wish came true after she successfully dispatched fellow American Iva Jovic in straight sets, 6-1, 6-4, in the fourth round, advancing to the quarterfinals.
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However, quarterfinalist Gauff has now decided to briefly shift focus to something that, by a hair, could have turned into an otherwise serious moment. During the match, Gauff unleashed a powerful return that unfortunately went out of bounds and nearly hit her physio, Maria Vago, in the face. The shot was nearly a bullseye, but Vago managed to dodge the impact as the ball merely brushed her hat.
Gauff took to Instagram and posted a story about the incident, along with a funny split-screen image of the moment. The American tagged Vago and dropped a one-word apology with tear-eyed emojis:
“oops”
“@lic.maria_vago”
Vago is a licensed physiotherapist who has been with Gauff since 2023 and oversees everything from Gauff’s pre-match warm-ups to post-match recovery.
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Coco Gauff’s road to a second US Open title is inching closer by the day. After beating compatriot Iva Jovic, Gauff is now the youngest American woman since Serena Williams to reach the quarterfinals of three majors in one year.
Despite having few strong moments, Jovic committed 30 unforced errors and dropped a serve that landed her in trouble and helped Gauff capitalize for a win.
After the match, Gauff praised the 18-year-old Jovic. During her on-court interview post-match, Gauff said:
“Iva is an incredible player, an incredible talent. She plays beyond her years. I’ve been in similar positions, and I’m looking forward to many more battles out here, and I’m sure we’ll be playing a lot more matches in the future, so let’s give it up for Iva.”
Gauff has not dropped a set so far, and up next, the No. 4 seed will go up against the reigning Roland Garros champion Mirra Andreeva to advance to the semifinals and possibly bag the US title for a second time.
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In all of their five previous meetings, Gauff prevailed over Andreeva and dropped just two sets in the process.
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