Elina Svitolina's Australian Open victory still resonates as Gauff hunts form in Dubai
Elina Svitolina’s victory over Coco Gauff in the Australian Open quarterfinals has cast a long shadow as Gauff scrapes through a nervy second-round win in Dubai. The American described the earlier loss to Svitolina as part of a run of results she’s trying to shake off while attempting to rebuild confidence on tour.
Gauff references Svitolina while seeking rhythm
Coco Gauff’s straight-sets win in the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships second round was far from fluent. She battled gusty conditions, a strong-returning opponent and her own inconsistent serve to beat Anna Kalinskaya 6-4, 6-4. In her postmatch comments she singled out a recent defeat — the Australian Open quarterfinal loss to Elina Svitolina — as one of the setbacks she’s working through.
“Just trying to find form again, which is tough, ” Gauff said in her press conference after the match. The remark underlined how the loss to Svitolina has factored into her mindset: not as a single result but as part of a sequence that includes an earlier loss in Doha and the Australian Open exit. Gauff suggested that steadying the ship now is about converting sloppy days into wins, even when she doesn’t feel she’s at her best.
Why Svitolina’s win matters beyond a single match
When an opponent like Svitolina beats a rising star in a major quarterfinal, the impact is more than immediate scoreboard effect. It becomes a measuring stick for the younger player’s progress and a strategic reference point. For Gauff, the defeat at the Australian Open appears to have functioned as both a reality check and a motivational spur — a reminder of the tactical and mental polish required to advance deep into slams.
Gauff’s performance in Dubai showcased the duality of her current phase: moments of high-level defence and shotmaking alongside a troubling number of unforced errors and double faults. She leaned on resilience to come back from breaks in each set, a trait that top players like Svitolina have long displayed on big stages. That contrast helps explain why Gauff’s mention of Svitolina resonated in her debriefs; the match-up at Melbourne highlighted concrete areas for improvement that Gauff is now trying to address under tournament pressure.
Implications for the rest of the season
The interplay between a marquee loss and a gritty follow-up win is common during long seasons, and Gauff’s recent stretch is no exception. Winning in Dubai despite an imperfect display provides a platform to build on, but the memory of the Australian Open loss to Svitolina may linger as a benchmark for what remains necessary to consistently beat the tour’s best.
For Svitolina, the Australian Open result stands as evidence of her capacity to deliver at the highest level. For Gauff, treating that outcome as a lesson rather than a letdown is crucial. The young American heads deeper into the Dubai draw with a modest confidence boost, yet the work highlighted by that earlier meeting with Svitolina — tightening serve, cutting down errors and maintaining offensive consistency — remains squarely on her to-do list.
How both players respond in upcoming events will be telling: whether Svitolina can keep translating big-match wins into momentum across the season, and whether Gauff can turn the learning from that Australian Open quarterfinal into more polished, repeatable performances on hard courts.
