Coco Gauff, the 21-year-old star of American tennis, could not contain her emotions after a painful loss in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open. She lost to Ukrainian tennis player Elina Svitolina with a crushing score of 1:6, 2:6. The match lasted only 59 minutes and turned into a real nightmare for Gauff.
The statistics of the game indicate serious problems in the athlete's performance: Coco made 26 unforced errors with only three "winners." The weakest point was her serve — out of 11 attempts on her second serve, she managed to convert only 2, and her opponent was able to win the game in the first set four times.
After the match, cameras at Rod Laver Arena captured Gauff's emotional reaction. She tried to find a quiet place and headed to the locker room, where she hit her racket against a concrete ramp seven times, completely destroying her equipment.
At the press conference after the match, Coco commented on her behavior, noting that she does not like breaking rackets, but at that moment it seemed necessary. "I was looking for a place where there were no cameras. There are moments that shouldn't be in the spotlight. But it's easier for me to release my emotions on the racket than to take it out on my team — they are wonderful people and don't deserve my aggression," Gauff admitted.
Despite the emotional outburst, the two-time Grand Slam champion emphasized that such outbursts help her cope with the immense pressure she has felt since her debut at the age of 15.
