Coco Gauff Calls for Tennis to Emulate Basketball in Male vs Female Matches

Coco Gauff, the US Open champion, expressed her enthusiasm for integrating mixed-gender contests within tennis, taking inspiration from a recent basketball event where NBA star Stephen Curry faced WNBA’s Sabrina Ionescu in a 3-point challenge. Gauff praised the groundbreaking basketball event, suggesting tennis could host similar competitions, such as a serve target challenge between Serena Williams and Nick Kyrgios. Speaking from Dubai, where she’s participating in a WTA event, Gauff also proposed a drop shot challenge featuring Ons Jabeur and Carlos Alcaraz.

The basketball challenge, where Curry and Ionescu competed from the NBA’s longer 3-point line, highlighted the skill and competitiveness between genders. Gauff admired Ionescu’s performance against Curry, hoping such mixed-gender challenges continue, emphasizing they showcase skill over physicality.

Gauff, who’s had a strong start to the season with a title in Auckland and a semi-final appearance at the Australian Open, looks to bounce back from a recent early exit in Doha. She’s set to play Elisabetta Cocciaretto next and remains optimistic about her performance in Dubai.

Meanwhile, former world No.1s Victoria Azarenka and Karolina Pliskova advanced to the second round in Dubai, with Azarenka defeating Arantxa Rus and Pliskova maintaining her unbeaten record against Zhang Shuai.