Queens, NY—As the US Open approaches, Coco Gauff is determined to overcome a persistent issue in her game—her serve. With a staggering 320 double faults this season, the 21-year-old American has the worst double-fault record on tour, surpassing the next closest player by over 100. Fully aware of the impact this has had on her performance, Gauff made a significant change just days before the year’s final Grand Slam. She parted ways with one of her coaches and brought in Gavin MacMillan, the biomechanics expert who helped Aryna Sabalenka fix her own serving woes.
“I knew it was time for a technical adjustment,” Gauff explained at Flushing Meadows, where she won her first Grand Slam title in 2023. “I didn’t want to waste any more time sticking with what wasn’t working.”
The decision to bring in MacMillan comes after Gauff’s struggles on the court—especially with her serve. She has accumulated an average of 6.8 double faults per match, with some matches seeing as many as 23 double faults, like the one she posted in her win over Danielle Collins in Montreal earlier this month.
“I’m obsessed with improving,” Gauff admitted. “Sometimes it’s overwhelming because I push myself so much. But I see a clear vision of where I want to go, and I’m not wasting any more time doing things that don’t get me closer.”
MacMillan’s track record is impressive. He worked with Sabalenka to transform her serving motion in 2022, and the results were evident almost immediately. In 2023, Sabalenka clinched her first Grand Slam title and has since gone on to win two more majors. She’s now the defending US Open champion and has been No. 1 in the WTA rankings for over a year, with her serve playing a major role in her success.
“I had tried everything before,” Sabalenka recalled on Friday. “My serve was the last thing standing between me and quitting tennis. But when I started working with Gavin, I instantly felt something change. I knew right away that there was a better feel in my serve, and that gave me hope.”
Gauff is now hoping that MacMillan can deliver similar results. After a frustrating end to her 2023 US Open, where she hit 19 double faults in a fourth-round loss to Emma Navarro, Gauff has been on a mission to refine every aspect of her game. After splitting with coach Brad Gilbert soon after the US Open, she added Matthew Daly to her team, but has now made another coaching change.
“Sometimes the process is tough, but it’s the only way to get better,” Gauff said. “I’m committed to getting everything in my game right, and I believe that fixing this one part will bring everything together.”
With her first-round match against Ajla Tomljanovic set for Sunday at 11:00 AM, Gauff’s eyes are firmly set on the future. If she can resolve her serving issues, there’s no telling how far she can go in this year’s US Open.
