Coco Gauff gifts New Balance shoes to ball kids crew at Billie Jean King Cup
Coco Gauff recently thrilled a group of ball kids in the USA's Billie Jean King Cup tie against Austria by gifting them New Balance shoes.
Gauff teamed up with her sponsor to gift the all-girl crew of ball kids pairs of CG1 shoes. Those are Gauff's personal branded shoes which she has created in association with New Balance.
The all-white shoes are also inscribed with a special inspirational message from Gauff to upcoming players.
The words "You can change the world with your racket," can be seen on the front of the shoes.
twitter.com/i/web/status/1…Coco Gauff and @newbalance gifted CG1s to the all-girl ball kid crew for the #BJKCup qualifying tie between the US and Austria.
“You can change the world with your racket.” ❤️ twitter.com/i/web/status/1… https://t.co/pTM54oEZoI
Gauff and her star-studded Team USA went 2-0 up in the Qualifier tie on Friday. The 19-year-old herself got them off to an ideal start with a 6-1, 6-3 win over Austria's Julia Grabher. American No. 1 Jessica Pegula then extended their lead with a 6-0, 7-5 victory against Sinja Kraus.
Gauff will be in action again on Saturday in a reverse singles tie against Kraus. The World No. 6 will aim to make it two wins in two matches before heading into the clay-court season.
In her last WTA appearance, at the Miami Open a few weeks ago, Gauff lost 7-6(8), 5-7, 2-6 to Anastasia Potapova in the third round.
Coco Gauff exudes confidence ahead of clay-court swing
Coco Gauff is optimistic about the clay-court season, saying that she has a clear picture of how she plans to play on the surface.
Speaking after her Miami Open third-round exit, Gauff claimed that players with a more physical gamestyle perform better on clay. That is why the American, who reached the Roland Garros final last year, feels more comfortable on the red dirt.
"I definitely think the game does simplify a little bit. I have a clearer picture of how I want to play on that surface," Coco Gauff said in a press conference after her Miami loss. "I definitely think physically, usually, those are the players that are doing well on clay, so I think that's why it suits me a lot."
Gauff aims to take her learnings from the 2023 hard-court season into the clay swing, while also taking confidence from her performance on clay last season.
"Taking in what I've done on the hard court season, I think, will help me into the clay season because last year, I didn't have a great start, and that clay season turned it around," Gauff expressed.
Gauff already has a title this season, winning the ASB Classic in Auckland a couple of months ago.