Coco Gauff is one of the most accomplished young athletes in tennis today, but she will be the first to tell you that her own mind doesn’t always reflect that reality. After a career-defining run at the 2026 Miami Open, the two-time Grand Slam champion stepped in front of reporters and offered a candid look at a psychological battle that has followed her throughout the tournament imposter syndrome.
The admission came during a post-match press conference on Tuesday, March 24, following her quarterfinal victory over Belinda Bencic of Switzerland. With the win, Gauff secured her first-ever spot in the Miami Open semifinals. Rather than simply celebrating the milestone, she used the moment to be honest about the internal voice that still tells her, even now, that she does not quite belong where she is.
Doubts that follow a champion
Gauff has described a disconnect between her objective achievements and how she experiences them emotionally. Even when tournament officials recite her list of accomplishments during pre-match warmups, she said it does not register as her own story. She acknowledged having to consciously remind herself that she has built a legitimate career at the highest level of the sport, noting that the results on the court are ultimately the most reliable measure of where she stands not how she feels in a given moment.
Her coaching team has been an active part of addressing the issue, regularly reinforcing her sense of identity and capability as a player. Gauff said those reminders help, though the effect is inconsistent. There are moments when she absorbs the message fully, and others when the doubt creeps back in. She described her current focus as simply trying to land in the believing column more often than not.
A win that required digging deep
The victory over Bencic, a double Olympic medalist, was not a straightforward one. Gauff dropped the second set convincingly before regrouping to take the deciding set and close out the match. The final score of 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 reflected a player who had to work through adversity to get the result something that, in hindsight, mirrors the mental challenge she has been describing all week.
Her next match will be against Czech player Karolina Muchova on Thursday, March 26, with a place in the final on the line.
Gauff expressed genuine surprise at how far she has advanced, saying she entered the week without expectations of reaching the last four. She described a sense of growing momentum through each successive match, even as she has been pushed to three sets in multiple rounds, feeling her level rising with each outing.
A historic milestone
The semifinal appearance carries significance beyond this single tournament. At 22 years old, Gauff is now the youngest American woman to reach the Miami Open singles semifinals since Serena Williams accomplished the feat in 2004 the same year Gauff was born. It is the kind of statistical footnote that connects two generations of American tennis in a striking way.
The two have crossed paths publicly before. Earlier this year, Gauff went viral after smashing her racket during a frustrating loss at the Australian Open. Williams, who retired from professional tennis in August 2022, stepped in with a show of solidarity on social media, defending Gauff’s emotional reaction and offering a lighthearted nod to her own famously intense competitiveness on court.
Playing through injury
The Miami run has also been a test of physical resilience. Gauff was forced to retire from her match at the Indian Wells tournament just weeks earlier due to an arm injury that was later identified as a nerve issue following an MRI. Coming into Miami, there were real questions about whether she would be able to compete at full capacity.
She has managed the injury carefully throughout the week, acknowledging that it still makes itself known on court but that the discomfort has been steadily decreasing with each passing day. Her ability to compete through it and reach the final four adds another layer to what has already been a compelling story at this year’s tournament.
