Who is Coco Gauff's new coach Matt Daly? All you need to know about the finance graduate who coached Denis Shapovalov
Coco Gauff parted ways with her coach Brad Gilbert a few days ago in the aftermath of her exit from the US Open. She was the defending champion in New York, and was knocked out by Emma Navarro in the fourth round.
Gauff, before the China Open, has already found Gilbert's replacement. She revealed that she will be coached by Matt Daly, who previously worked with former top-10 player Denis Shapovalov.
Daly used to represent Notre Dame's tennis team during his university days. He graduated with a degree in finance in 2001 and dabbled on the ITF and Futures circuit for a little over two years. He then turned his attention to nurturing the talent of the next generation of tennis pros and started working at the Tennis Club of Trumbull in Connecticut.
While Daly helped out a few players on the WTA and ATP Tours over the years, he never took up a full-time assignment. The seeds for the same were sown during his tenure as Shapovalov's coach, and now he has joined Gauff's team to help her get back on track.
Gauff and Gilbert remain on friendly terms despite the end of their professional relationship. The two tasted immediate success after they joined forces last year, though the 20-year-old hit a wall in recent weeks with some disappointing results.
Brad Gilbert coached Coco Gauff to her maiden Grand Slam title
Coco Gauff shined under Brad Gilbert's tutelage when they teamed up for the first time last summer. She won the biggest title of her career at the Citi Open, a WTA 500 event. She surpassed the achievement a couple of weeks later by winning the Cincinnati Open, her first WTA 1000 title.
Gauff then went a step further and clinched her maiden Major crown in front of her home crowd at the US Open. Under Gilbert's guidance, she also reached the semifinals of the Australian Open and the French Open this year, and won the doubles title at the latter Major.
However, Gauff's results have plateaued in recent weeks. Her Wimbledon campaign came to an end in the fourth round, and her time at the Paris Olympics wasn't memorable either. She failed to defend her title in Cincinnati, and the same story repeated at the US Open.
After winning the China Open, Gauff has reached the final of the WTA Finals now, where she is battling Zheng Qinwen for the title.