US OPEN

September 10, 2021

Coco Gauff

Caty McNally

Press Conference

GAUFF-McNALLY/Dabrowski-Stefani

6-6 (ret.)

THE MODERATOR: If both of you would, your thoughts on an abbreviated match and your thoughts on what transpired.

CATY McNALLY: Yeah, obviously they're a really tough team. We've never played against both of them together. We kind of knew what they were going to do, but I think they did a great job of closing the net, neutralizing the points with lobs, just kind of making us uncomfortable.

I think we had some chances in the first set, like 40-Love on their serve. I think if we could have capitalized on those, we were talking about you never know what would have happened. It kind of sucks to win that way. We just hope that Luisa recovers well.

COCO GAUFF: Yeah, same thing. I don't really have much words. I just want to send best wishes to Luisa. A nice girl, great player, great doubles player, hopefully she can bounce back.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. What are your thoughts on what you've accomplished in getting here and on the opportunity you have now?

COCO GAUFF: I mean, for me, I knew that this was going to come, with Caty and I, I knew in juniors we were going to be a tough team to beat in the pros. I'm glad that it's there.

I'm just super thankful for the opportunity. I think a lot of people kind of forget about doubles a little bit. This is just as exciting. I would be just as excited for singles if I were in this position in singles. Not too many people can say they're a Grand Slam finalist. We can say that. Hopefully we can go all the way.

CATY McNALLY: Yeah, we've worked really hard for this. We've had some really tough losses. We've learned a lot along the way. I'm just super happy that everything is kind of, like, gelling this week.

Just learning each match what we can do better, each match playing some really good tennis. Yeah, like she said, we're Grand Slam finalists. That's something that not very many people get to say and it's pretty exciting.

Q. What do you think about what's happening on the women's side in tennis with all teenagers?

CATY McNALLY: I think it's super exciting for the next generation, showing age is just a number. We're all capable of playing with the top players out here. We're all coming out, playing very fiercely, not afraid to get the crowd involved, playing on these big stages.

I think I saw a US Open post before I got in here about all four of us. I thought that was just really cool.

COCO GAUFF: Oh, they did?

I think it's really cool. Definitely a shift going on I feel like into the new generation, new gen, next gen, whatever term they use on social media. There's definitely a shift coming.

I'm super happy for Leylah and Emma. Obviously happy for Caty and I. We already know there's going to be a teenage champion in singles. Hopefully we can do that in doubles.

Q. Obviously you're having a lot of early success. What are some of the things or the steps you're taking so that you can have some long and fruitful careers?

COCO GAUFF: Definitely probably on my team's mind physically-wise they are doing the steps that I'm sure for Caty and her team they're doing the steps, so we can have long careers physically. And mentally, I don't know. I just feel like that's something you just go day by day and learn from.

I mean, you can learn from previous experience from other players. I think for me, at least in my opinion, I think mentally is the most important thing to take care of first, then everything else can go along.

For me, I just try to make sure that I'm having fun on the court. The moment you're not having fun is the moment you're not going to have a long career, at least in my opinion.

CATY McNALLY: I totally agree with that. I'm super grateful that I have people around me on my team that support me, know when to push me, but know when to stop and let me have more of a mental break.

This sport is so mental. It's so easy to just kind of lose -- I don't know, lose your passion and fun for it. It's just really important to have people around you that make it fun day by day. You're not going to be home. You're going to be traveling a lot. You want to be around people that you like to be around.

Q. The conversations that have stuck with you at this tournament, any particular ones with a youngster you've had, somebody that has been a mentor for you?

COCO GAUFF: I don't have any really this tournament other than the conversations that I have with Caty on the court.

I will say in doubles, for me with her, she definitely calms me down because I can get riled up just as easily as I can get pumped up. I can get angry, too. She's kind of there to calm me down. I do take that into singles. I know I wouldn't lash out at Caty in a match because I know she's trying her best. I have to remember to treat myself like that.

I wouldn't say there's a particular conversation, but I will say I do learn a lot just from how Caty is on the court, always positive, fighting. For me, personally, I can get into my head sometimes. I try to take that into my singles, not only doubles.

Q. Many people will be seeing you play as a doubles team for the first time. Would you each describe yourself and your partner and your role in your team.

CATY McNALLY: I mean, individually, obviously we all know Coco has an amazing serve, hits 120. It's unbelievable. I want to do that one day, too, but I'm just not there yet.

She's obviously incredible from the back. She can out-rally anyone, especially in a backhand to backhand. I think she's really improved her net game. It's awesome to see how much she enjoys getting forward now. I think when we first played, she didn't get forward as much. Now she's willing to take balls out of the air, poach. It's awesome to see her growth.

As a team, we just gel really well together. We get along really well on the court as well as off the court. When one person is down, we can pick each other up and get each other going. That's just something that comes natural to both of us. It's awesome.

COCO GAUFF: As a team I feel like tennis is very mental and everything. I think how like you always have a person in your family that just kind of resets everything. I guess Caty for me on the court is that person. She kind of helps reset everything. That's just like on the mental side.

Obviously her game is unbelievable. She probably comes forward more than anybody on tour, I would say, probably her and Taylor are hand-in-hand on coming to the net. She has a big forehand. I don't think she realizes how big it is. But we win a lot of points just off that forehand.

I think just like her ability to see the ball and see the court awareness is what helps us a lot. I'm not always, like, you know, good at figuring out where I am in the court. I feel like she knows exactly where she is in the court and what she wants to do with the ball.

As a team, honestly, I was just telling my coach that's with me, Alexis, this week, that I think we just have a lot of chemistry. I feel like in doubles that's the main thing that can take you far. Like you might not have as much skill as your opponents or anything, but I think the chemistry can take you far. If you like who you're playing with, obviously I love playing with Caty, love her off the court, too, I think that kind of shows. I feel like we're on a string together when we move on the court. That's cool to see.

Q. Back to Leylah and Emma, how they might be inspirational figures for you guys. When you watch them, does it feel like it's green lights? Does it feel like maybe it is go time, Grand Slam finals and Grand Slam titles in singles aren't as far off as I thought they were?

COCO GAUFF: I feel like for me, it's always been a goal to win a Grand Slam regardless. That's always been the green light. When I played in Wimbledon, even though I fell short, I really did believe I could win the tournament. Every tournament I believe I can win the tournament.

Obviously with Leylah and Emma, I guess it makes the goal seem closer because they're close in age to Caty and I, too. So it definitely shows that we're not too far off.

But I will say that, I mean, I think both of us have that belief regardless of other people's success. I think we have been believing we can win. I think just with Leylah and Emma, what they're doing, I think they believe the same thing. Obviously they're in the finals, so they definitely can believe they can win. I think they've been believing that since they started tennis. I think every great player believes they can win the tournament, that is any Grand Slam finalist, semifinalist, winner, they believe they can win the tournament before they started the tournament.