Coco Gauff has suggested that Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner’s dominance has made the men’s tour less interesting than the WTA circuit. Gauff is one of four different Grand Slam champions on the women’s side this year, with Madison Keys, Iga Swiatek, and Aryna Sabalenka also claiming big titles.
In comparison, Alcaraz and Sinner have shared the last eight Major trophies, and everyone is questioning whether a third player will emerge to challenge them at the top of the game. And Gauff believes it’s more fun for fans to see different faces at the latter stages of tournaments.
The American is in Riyadh for the WTA Finals, where she is the defending champion. It’s already been a successful season for Gauff, who claimed her second Major title at the French Open and also won the WTA 1000 in Wuhan.
Ahead of the year-end championships, the world No. 3 reflected on the season and the four different Grand Slam winners.
“I think it’s honestly great to have four different champions. All the girls have had a competitive year across the year,” Gauff said. “I think that it makes the sport more exciting when there’s multiple chances for something to happen.”
Things are very different on the ATP Tour, where Alcaraz and Sinner are thousands of points ahead of their rivals in the rankings and have shared the last eight Grand Slam titles. But Gauff would rather see some variety.
She continued: “Carlos and Jannik are being great. There’s talk about there needing to be a third person to make it more interesting.
“I think it’s better to have different champions than the same two. I’m thinking long-term it’s more exciting for me as a fan watching the semis and quarters not knowing who is going to win.”
While Gauff is always happy to see a new champion emerge, she’ll be hoping to defend her title in Riyadh. The world No. 3 has been drawn in the ‘Steffi Graf’ group alongside Sabalenka, Jessica Pegula, and Jasmine Paolini.
Gauff takes on Pegula in her opening match on Sunday – a rematch of the recent Wuhan Open final, which she won. The pair are good friends off the court, and spent years playing doubles together.
When Gauff won the Wuhan Open earlier this month, she told Pegula: “When I came on tour, you were one of the first people to be nice to me and welcome me with open arms.
“That really went a long way, so I appreciate you. It’s great to finally play in the final against you, and I hope for many more. So, congratulations and thank you.”
