Coco Gauff, the reigning US Open champion, has suffered an unfortunate setback just a few weeks before her Flushing Meadows championship defense. Days after losing in the third round of the Canadian Open, Yulia Putintseva of Russia stunned World No. 2 in the opening round of the Cincinnati Open on Thursday.
Her contentious third-round loss at the Paris Olympics last month and her fourth-round Wimbledon setback were preceded by the back-to-back losses on the hardcourt circuit in North America.
Regarding her current slump, Gauff stated, “I feel like I have to work on consistency, overall,” according to Tennis.com.”I’m going to try to reset when I get home. I guess I’m just trying to reset and get ready for the US Open, which is obviously something I have a lot coming up.”
Analyst Jon Wertheim questioned whether Gauff’s “mental approach” to the game was more to blame for her downturn in an interview with the Tennis Channel. He also brought up the fact that, going into the US Open, Gauff had dropped 16 of her previous 18 points.
“In this sport, things can turn around quickly, but losing 16 of your previous 18 points is not a good way to get into the major that you’ve only won once. It’s alarming,” he remarked.
Gauff won her first-ever US Open championship exactly a year ago, using her victory in the Cincinnati Open as a springboard. This time, at Flushing, New York, she doesn’t have much momentum to build on, which could signal an early withdrawal from the final major of 2024, where she is seeded third.
Gauff enters the major with the third-shortest chances (+550) to repeat as champion, behind joint favorites Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka (+300), though the US Open draw has not yet been revealed.
Apart from Gauff, American expectations for the US Open are high for World No. 6 Jessica Pegula and World No. 10 Danielle Collins. Well-known players like World No. 12 Taylor Fritz and World No. 13 Tommy Paul will be competing for the men’s title. But the focus will be on 21-year-old phenom Ben Shelton, who lost to eventual winner Novak Djokovic at Flushing last year after reaching the semifinals.
The main draw of the 2024 US Open gets underway Monday, August 26.
