Coco Gauff gives honest take on her Italian Open semifinals loss to Iga Swiatek

Coco Gauff was trying to pull off dual wins at the Italian Open in singles and doubles. Her singles campaign came to an end in Thursday's semifinals when Gauff lost to World No. 1 Iga Swiatek in straight sets.

Gauff, the current World No. 3 in singles, has not won a singles title since January's ASB Classic on hardcourts. She is 21-7 on the year. While she was likely disappointed about losing to Swiatek, she offered an honest take on her level of play in the match.

Gauff admitted that the only person she would have lost to in that match was Swiatek. If she faced anyone else in the semifinals with her level of play, she would have come out the winner. It is hard to operate in the area of "what ifs", but Gauff could be right.

The Privilege and Challenge of Being World No. 3

Gauff is experiencing the privilege and challenge of being the World No. 3. The problem with being World No. 3 is that she is not the top seed in her side of the draw. She is either projected to meet World No. 1 Swiatek or World No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals. That's one reason why Gauff being in the running for World No. 2 a few weeks ago was significant.

It is worth nothing that Sabalenka has not won a title since the 2024 Australian Open but has been va finalist in Stuttgart (losing to Elena Rybakina) and in Madrid (losing to Swiatek). Swiatek is most confident on the clay, but if any player will catch her, it will be either Sabalenka or Gauff with Sabalenka earning the advantage because she will not see her until the finals.

With the French Open days away, Swiatek, the three-time champion, is the favorite, but little separates her from Sabalenka and Gauff. Gauff's position in the draw, either in Swiatek or Sabalenka's half, could be a first hint at who has the best chance of meeting her in the Roland Garros finals. While that is said with a degree of confidence, we have seen many examples of Grand Slam upsets. All of the predictions and speculations are part of what makes tennis fun. It is a solo sport so any given day, no one can preduct with 100% certainty what will happen.

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