World number three Coco Gauff lost to Ukrainian Elina Svitolina in the quarterfinals of the 2026 Australian Open. After the match, Gauff “paid tribute” to Svitolina, noting the quality of the Ukrainian's game.
At the 2026 Australian Major, Coco Gauff started with two straight wins over Camilla Rakhimova and Olga Danilovich. The American then defeated compatriot Haley Baptiste and her highest-ranked opponent at the Major, Karolina Muchova (WTA No. 19), in three sets.
Goff's opponent in the quarterfinals was Ukraine's top seed Elina Svitolina, who, unlike Coco, did not lose a single set at the 2026 Australian Open. Elina managed to complete the quarterfinal match in two sets, defeating the current world number three with a score of 6:1, 6:2.
Allowing Svitolina to convert break after break in the first set, Hoffe tried to turn the game around by changing her equipment – during the game she gave five of her rackets to be pulled. However, this did not help Coco win at least one set, and in the second game the American could not even hold back tears.
Coco Gauff couldn't hold back her tears during her match against Elina Svitolina. REUTERS/Hollie Adams
The match lasted 59 minutes, during which Coco made 26 unforced errors (Svitolina's 16) and only hit 3(!) winners. Commenting on her defeat after the match, the American noted the high quality of Elina's game.
“I give her credit. She made me play like that. It's not like I just woke up and… yeah, it was a bad day. But bad days are often because of the opponents.”
After the game, footage appeared on social media of Goff hitting one of her rackets on the floor.
At the post-match press conference, Coco explained the reasons for her actions. According to the tennis player, aggression towards the racket helps her cope with defeats and control her emotions when communicating with people after matches.
“I think about myself because I know myself. I don't want to lash out at my team. They're good people and they don't deserve this. I know I'm emotional. I just took a moment to go and do it [break the racket]. I don't think it's bad, I'm not trying to do it on the court in front of the kids, etc. But I know I need to let those emotions out, otherwise I'll just be harsh on the people around me. I don't want to do that. Like I said, they don't deserve this. They did their best and I did my part. I just need to let out the frustration,” added Goffe.