Coco Gauff highlights she has nothing but positive to say about Auckland as a tournament but she simply wanted “a higher level of competition” ahead of the Australian Open and that’s why she picked the United Cup as the event where she wanted to start her season.
In each of the past two seasons, the American enjoyed triumphant runs at the WTA 250 tournament in Auckland.
So when it was revealed that Gauff decided to ditch the ASB Classic and instead play at the United Cup in the first week of the new season, some were left surprised.
To no one’s surprise, the world No. 3 was asked about it during a pre-tournament presser in Perth.
Gauff: I wanted a higher level of competition, as well as a team competition
“I love Auckland. I won twice there. It was a great tournament. For me I wanted to play a higher level of competition and also a team competition. I had a lot of fun with the Olympics. Basically a similar crew here today,” the 20-year-old explained.
“Just had a lot of fun. The season’s already so much by ourselves that it’s nice to mix it up. I’m looking forward to hopefully having a good couple weeks here in Perth and hopefully in Sydney, as well.”
In this year’s Auckland player field, there won’t be any top-20…
