Serena Williams’ ex-coach Rennae Stubbs ‘impressed’ by Coco Gauff’s stunning French Open, Madrid & Rome milestone

Serena Williams’s former coach, Rennae Stubbs, is the latest to weigh in on Coco Gauff making her second French Open final. She took to social media to laud her countrywoman.

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Sharing a social media post about Gauff becoming the youngest player to reach the Madrid, Rome, and French Open finals in the same year, the former doubles World No. 1 dubbed the feat:

“So impressive”

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Rennae Stubbs, who has coached the likes of Karolína Plískova, Samantha Stosur, and Eugenie Bouchard in addition to Serena Williams, is an active tennis observer and often supports American players on social media. Coco Gauff has managed to turn her season around after a slow start. Returning to clay helped her rediscover some of her best tennis, as she made back-to-back finals at the WTA 1000 events in Madrid and Rome.

Gauff’s run to the summit clash in Madrid was also special given that she beat the likes of Mirra Andreeva and Iga Swiatek en route. She dropped only two games against the latter in what turned out to be her most dominant win over a player who has beaten her in some big finals, including the 2022 French Open. She went on to lose the final to Aryna Sabalenka, the player she will also face in the summit clash of the 2025 French Open.

The run in Rome saw Gauff beat Andreeva, Zheng Qinwen, and Emma Raducanu. She eventually came up short against Jasmine Paolini in the final.

Coco Gauff sets Aryna Sabalenka showdown at French Open after dominant SF win

Coco Gauff set up a showdown against Aryna Sabalenka at the French Open after coming through a dominant 6-2, 6-1 win over Lois Boisson in the semifinal. It will mark the first occasion since 2017 that the top two seeds will contest a Grand Slam final.

Gauff was in full flight during her semifinal encounter, moving her opponent from side to side using her solid groundstrokes. She was too strong on serve and was broken only once during the contest. Sabalenka, meanwhile, had a much harder time against the three-time defending champion. She overcame a second-set stumble before dominating the third to come through 7-6(1), 4-6, 6-0.

The two have split their past 10 meetings, their current head-to-head standing at 5-5. It was, however, the American who won their only prior meeting in a Grand Slam final: the 2023 US Open.

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Vedant Chandel

Vedant is an experienced journalist at Sportskeeda, having been part of the team since 2016. Known for his insightful coverage of Tennis, Hockey, and Olympic sports at the company, he has also been contributing to the Hindustan Times for the past 3 years.

Holding a Master's degree in English, and a PG Diploma in Print Journalism, Vedant's academic background equips him well for his journalism endeavors. He has covered the Olympics qualifiers on the ground, taken exclusive interviews with multiple Indian Olympians, and clinched Sportskeeda's prestigious Writer Award for Best Olympics Commentator in 2021.

While Vedant remains neutral on the Tennis GOAT debate, he holds a deep admiration for Tsvetana Pironkova and Petra Kvitova for their unparallelled grasscourt skills and personalities, along with Juan Martin del Potro. As for tournaments, his heart is undeniably drawn to Wimbledon, and when asked why, he simply states, "There's something about the grass."

Beyond his passion for sports, he enjoys traveling and has a soft spot for good movies.

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