Coco Gauff is preparing to return to action at the China Open, though the American star has admitted she is approaching the tournament with a different mindset.
The 21-year-old enters the event as the defending champion, but she confessed she does not feel like one this time around, instead treating the competition more as a “practice tournament”.
It has been a turbulent 2025 season for Gauff, marked by highs and lows. Her biggest triumph came in June, when she lifted her second Grand Slam title at the French Open, solidifying her place among the sport’s elite.
However, that success was followed by early exits at both Wimbledon and the US Open, results that tempered the momentum of her Roland Garros victory.
Despite the setbacks, Gauff remains upbeat, viewing the China Open as an opportunity to reset and regain consistency.
“Although technically I’m the defending champion, it doesn’t feel like that at all. I don’t want to say ‘not care’ because obviously I’m not playing a tournament and trying to lose or anything,” said Gauff.
“But yeah, there is definitely a weight that you kind of just don’t care in a way, especially when you’ve had like a good moment of the season. I think winning the French Open helped me take that weight off less.
“I think last year I did care, but maybe I felt a little bit like I had to do something, because I hadn’t won a big title at that point, at that time of the year yet.
“I don’t know how I feel right now. I definitely feel a lot lighter. It feels, again, like a practice tournament. So we’ll see how it goes.”
