Coco Gauff has put together some absolutely wild tennis this 2026 season, but you won’t believe which match she’s calling her absolute favorite. It wasn’t some flawless performance, some dominant clinic. Nope, Gauff picked a US Open slugfest where she admitted her own game wasn’t even at its best. Talk about a surprise!
Gauff’s Gritty Favorite Shakes Up the Season’s Narrative
The 2026 season is pretty much wrapped for Gauff, with just one more commitment: the USA’s Billie Jean King Cup tie against Hungary. She got bounced in the round-robin stage of the WTA Finals, which was a tough pill to swallow after what’s been a mixed year for the American phenom. On one hand, she snagged her fourth WTA 1000 title at the Cincinnati Open. That’s huge! On the other, a Grand Slam title remained just out of reach. With 49 wins in 65 matches played, she’s definitely been putting in the work.
So when Christian’s Court in Indian Wells asked her for her favorite match of the year, everyone probably expected a pristine victory. Instead, Gauff pointed to her US Open quarter-final win over Mirra Andreeva. She fought back, she saved two match points on Ashe, and she sealed it in three sets. But here’s the kicker, straight from Gauff herself: “Even though it was not the best tennis for me, but probably my match against Mirra in the quarters of the US Open I believe. Saved the match point on Ashe. Yeah, it wasn’t my highest level match, but it was probably the hardest fought match I had this season.” That victory pushed her into the US Open semi-finals, one of two Grand Slam semi-final appearances this year, with her best-ever result coming at Wimbledon. It speaks volumes when the grind means more than the glory.
Noskova’s Wild Picks, Even After Winning Wimbledon
Gauff isn’t alone in having some unexpected favorites. Linda Noskova, who’s still in the WTA Finals field and battling for a spot in the championship, also opened up about her 2026 season, and her answers are just as wild. Noskova won her first major title this year at Wimbledon. Her *first major*! You’d think a win from that historic run would be her undisputed top pick, right? Wrong.
Noskova actually picked two matches, and get this, one of them she lost! She called out the Berlin final with Jessie Pegula, which she won, and then her US Open match against Aryna Sabalenka, which she lost. She described that Sabalenka match as a “great match” where she “was not in the greatest head space” and “didn’t have the best preparation.” But she “had to find my confidence, find my strengths as the matches went on.” She pulled that one “out of my sleeve,” was “very close to winning,” and it “definitely surprised me in a good way.” It’s incredible to hear players valuing the battles, the unexpected performances, and the sheer effort over the clean wins or even a Grand Slam title.
Noskova is set to face Elina Svitolina in the semi-finals of the WTA Finals. It’ll be a showdown to see who gets to play for the title. Meanwhile, Gauff has that Billie Jean King Cup tie against Hungary. For these players, it seems, the fight is truly the thing, and that’s something to look forward to!
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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