Coco Gauff crashes out of Wimbledon after shock Emma Navarro on Center Court

It came from Emma Navarro, a 23-year-old American three years removed from winning an NCAA singles title, who hit a forehand passing shot on the baseline to win the first set of their fourth-round duel, 6-4. , Nearly 40 minutes later, it was Navarro’s turn to gasp as she defeated the world No. 2, the American No. 1 and one of the current favorites with a stunning 6-4, 6-3 victory. Wimbledon The title which will be given on Saturday, July 13.

This defeat is a big disappointment for Gauff. She defeated her first three opponents and saw several other top threats to the title eliminated during the first week of the tournament, including inga swiatekWorld number 1.

After a hard-fought first set that yielded the final two points, one of which was a beautiful pass, the defending US Open champion fell apart in the fourth game of the second set. Having been so confident in her serve during the first 12 games, she suddenly became anxious and hesitant; Tossing the ball once and then twice; Double-faulting and making mistakes with his forehand on shots that are normally easy for him, which has left him unsteady at times in tight spots for long periods of time.

After two games, she openly feuded with her coach Brad Gilbert, angrily waving at him and pleading with him as he sat in his chair during a changeover. “Tell me something,” he said to her from across the court. “Tell me something,” she said as she went back to serving.

She would win that game and then turn to Gilbert for more pointers, then walk away in frustration. When Gilbert caught sight of him, he could be seen telling him to put more loops on his forehand and fight for every point, key elements of the formula that won him the US Open last September, when He changed his matches to longer distances. The track was contested and it defeated all its challengers.

After helping take both Andy Roddick and Andre Agassi to the top of the tennis mountain before leaving the coaching ranks to focus primarily on television work, Gilbert returned to work with Gauff a year ago . He did so specifically, to be there on Sunday evening: in the coaching box on Center Court at Wimbledon, with the dream and goal of helping one of his players win the title, something that had eluded him throughout his career. .

Gauff can still get there but not this year. Gilbert had no magic words and Gauff had no magic in her hands as her dream of another Grand Slam final, which had seemed so achievable for the first week at the All England Club, began to slip away.

Goff said that he and Gilbert had planned to play aggressively and try to hit him “hardball” through Navarro. it did not work. Navarro played like a backboard and went 16-3 in rallies that lasted more than nine shots.

Gough realized that she was having one of those rare moments where she was not able to find the solution herself.

“Today, mentally, there was a lot going on,” Goff said. “I felt like I wanted more direction out of the box.”

This is not the first time there has been such a conflict between Gough and Gilbert.

“They usually give me something,” she said. “I realized today that we were not all together. There is no one else to blame in this except me. I mean, I’m a player there. I have to make my own decisions on the court.”

Navarro, who shows little emotion regardless of the numbers on the scoreboard, kept her cool and remained composed. She had seen Gough going back and forth with Gilbert and knew what was going on.

“Definitely a confidence boost,” she said. “I got some momentum and was able to take advantage of it.”

When she’s on, the 2021 NCAA champion and No. 19 seed plays a solid, aggressive game from the baseline, and gives her opponents very few freebies. And was it ever on a Sunday evening? She used her backhand slice into Gauff’s forehand corner to neutralize the impact, refusing to redirect her momentum and forcing her to take the initiative on a shot that is not always her best friend.

On the surface, this was a major shock. Gauff was the only player to make at least the semi-finals of the last three Grand Slams. It appears she could repeat this at Wimbledon, especially with a favorable draw in the opening round, in which she faced two opponents ranked well outside the top 100.

Next came Navarro, who played one of the best matches of her career – or at least the best as she defeated four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka in the second round. In the span of a few days, Navarro, a humble young woman born in New York and raised in South Carolina, has become a center court giant killer.

She sent a forehand long just wide on her first match point, but earned another score with a twisting serve that drew an error from Gauff.

Another forehand error from Gauff gave Navarro her third match point. The other sealed it.

Navarro’s work was done. He said he “didn’t have a lot of words” after the match, and credited his aggression, saying he needed a chance to temper his opponent’s play.

She will face Italian No. 7 seed Jasmine Paolini — “not easy,” Navarro said.

It is not so easy for the No. 2 seed to be eliminated but something has definitely worked in Navarro’s favor. She knew Gauff as “Coco” before the worldwide celebrity was known by her first name as well as her second. In the end, old friends embraced at the net, tied once again on tennis’s most prestigious stage.

Navarro knew Gauff from her early days in competitive tennis and was playing with and against her, and Gauff was playing with girls a few years older because her own age rivals were not as good.

They played one junior match and traveled in the same circles until Navarro went to college and Gauff turned professional. Gauff was fully aware of Navarro’s talent and fully expected her old friend to excel once she joined the tour, as both her strength and fearlessness became known to every player on the tour very quickly. I went.

Navarro is still figuring out this version of himself.

“I believe it’s possible because it’s happening,” he said. “I’m starting to think, why not me? Why not? Why can’t I run in the quarterfinals? Why can’t I go deep into Grand Slams? I think I’m coming into that belief as we talk.”

(Henry Nicholls/AFP via Getty Images)