Coco Gauff revealed she is “very stubborn” as she explained why she was motivated to prove her coach Jean-Christophe Faurel wrong after her victory at the 2025 Wuhan Open.
The world No 3 overcame Jessica Pegula 6-4, 7-5 in the final in Wuhan to secure her maiden title at the tournament and her second title of 2025 after the French Open.
Gauff did not drop a set during her impressive run at the WTA 1000 event as she also saw off Jasmine Paolini, Laura Siegemund, Zhang Shuai and Moyuka Uchijima.
Prior to Wuhan, Gauff reached the semi-finals at the WTA 1000 tournament in Beijing, where she fell to a heavy 1-6, 2-6 defeat to eventual champion Amanda Anisimova.
The two-time major champion arrived in Asia after a 3-6, 2-6 loss to Naomi Osaka in the fourth round of the US Open. With the help of biomechanical expert Gavin MacMillan, who Gauff hired to replace her former coach Matt Daly, she changed her service motion in the week before the US Open.
Gauff has been coached by Jean-Christophe Faurel, a former French player, since 2019.
During the trophy ceremony in Wuhan, Gauff revealed Faurel did not want her to play in Asia after her difficult US Open campaign.
“It was a great Asian swing,” said the American.
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“I’m going to call JC (Jean-Christophe Faurel) out. He originally didn’t want me to come because I had a tough US Open, but I had to prove him wrong.
“I’m a very stubborn person, so maybe he said that on purpose for me to have a good result here.”
The 21-year-old also spoke warmly about world No 6 Pegula — her former doubles partner.
“You’re the three-set queen, so I was determined not to let you get there today because I felt like the odds would be in your favour in the third set,” Gauff said to Pegula.
“When I came on tour, you were one of the first people to be nice to me and welcome me with open arms and that really goes a long way and still goes a long way, so I appreciate you.
“It’s great to finally play in a final against you and I hope for many more. It’s an honour to share the court with you.”
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