American tennis star Cori Gauff said it was “special” to wake up being ranked inside the top-5 in both singles and doubles.
This Monday, Gauff rose to a career-high singles ranking of No 4 in the world.
On the doubles rankings, Gauff is the second-ranked player.
The fact that Gauff is just 18 and already a top-5 player in both singles and doubles is pretty astonishing.
“Special feeling waking up Top 5 in the world in singles and doubles,” Gauff tweeted.
special feeling waking up Top 5 in the world in singles and doubles. #grateful
ā Coco Gauff (@CocoGauff) October 24, 2022
Gauff set for a double-duty at the WTA Finals
Gauff is set to compete in both singles and doubles events at the WTA Finals.
Gauff, who will be teaming up with fellow American Jessica Pegula at the WTA Finals, admits it is a bit tough for her when she and her doubles partner also play singles on the same day.
“Usually I do two-a-days at home, to be honest. So I practice twice a day a lot. Usually the practices are harder than the matches, to be honest, at least physically. So I think I am just used to it. I think it all starts on the practice court. Then when you come out here, everything should feel routine. So for me, especially doing this tournament to tournament, I think it’s almost a routine. But it’s always more complicated when my partner and I are playing on the same days because we have to wait for each other to finish or vice versa,” Gauff explained.
Going into the WTA Finals, Gauff admits she only feels that different feeling at Grand Slams.
However, she noted that she may get that same feeling when she kicks off her WTA Finals campaign.
“There is something about when you step on the court at a Grand Slam that feels different than any other tournament. I don’t know. This is my first Finals, so I guess the feeling could be the same or not. I don’t think so. Just because I grew up watching the Grand Slams. They’re in the same place. The Finals change every year, so I think there’s something about playing on a place that you grew up watching that makes you a little bit more nervous,” Gauff said.