Italian Open: Aryna Sabalenka’s Crown Fails to Move Coco Gauff as She Comes Clean on Her Long Term Goals

While Coco Gauff is “not really focused on the number two” ranking, she wants as “many trophies” as possible in her cabinet. But even as a clay specialist, Gauff found 1 win in Stuttgart and 2 wins in Madrid. Her form looked in trouble, but she managed to climb to spot 2 for a few days during the Madrid Open. But sadly for fans hoping for the American’s rise, the reigning US Open Champion has “never been like a ranking-based person.”

Gauff finally found her rhythm in the Italian Open after stumbling for a few weeks. Despite being bageled once, she came back and took control of her favorite surface. She went on to beat Paula Badosa in the round of 16, even if it was a surprising victory, and sat down with Tennis Channel’s Prakash Amritraj for an interview. When asked if she aims to retake rank 2, she said, “Not really, no, not really, to be honest. Like, I’ve never been like a ranking-based person, and being number two would be really cool and an honor.”

Her main focus was winning the tournament, “But, you know, I focus more on, like, tournament wins and, you know, at the end of the day, I want to get as many trophies in my cabinet, and then the ranking will come with that. So yeah, I’m not really focused on the number two, I think number one would be really special. But honestly, between 2 or 3, it’s kind of the same for me.” 

Aryna Sabalenka is still comfortably sitting at no. 2 even though she was in danger of losing it a few weeks ago. Losing Madrid to the World No. 1 still earned her enough points to not be usurped but how long will this last?

The competition is tough for the number 2 spot. Iga Swiatek rests worry-free in Rome, but she will need to defend her French Open title if she wants to stay at number 1. As for Gauff, there is one way she can take back rank 2 from Aryna Sabalenka.

How Coco Gauff can rise to rank 2 and overthrow Aryna Sabalenka

Coco Gauff currently amasses 7463 points, and Aryna Sabalenka has 7703 points. The competition is tough for the number 2 spot, with a 240-point difference between the two. If Saba loses in the quarterfinal and Gauff reaches the final, the American player will attain rank 2. In case Sabalenka wins, Gauff will need to reach the final to get a crack at number 2.

If Sabalenka reaches the final, the American player will have to push her luck in the French Open. The task will be rather difficult for her as she will face either Madison Keys or Iga Swiatek in the semifinal. She has never beaten the two players on clay, adding another difficulty layer. Surprisingly, Gauff has not attained any top 20 wins in 2024 so far. 

She will need to break the curse to claim the top 2 spot and justify her ranking. Is she built for the task? Or will she crumble?