This week will be quite an “anxious” week for Coco Gauff, and not because she is competing for high stakes at the WTA Finals in Riyadh.
While she navigates a tough round-robin group she shares with Iga Swiatek, Jessica Pegula, and Barbora Krejcikova, the American world No 3 will be keeping an eye on the US presidential election, which will hit its climax on November 5, right in the middle of the tournament.
“I voted. I posted content trying to encourage people to vote. It's definitely on my mind,” Gauff told reporters in Riyadh on Friday.
“It's a tough time for our country, a crucial time for our country right now. All I can do is encourage people, especially young people, to vote and use their voice. Especially in my generation, there's a lot of people who don't see the power of voting. For me, I do.
“I don't think it will affect me when I'm playing. It's November 5, so 6 here, it will be a very anxious day that day.”
At 20 years old, Gauff was able to vote in a presidential election for the first time in her life. She has always been well-informed, though, when it comes to politics and social issues, and likes to do her part and speak up whenever needed.
“Obviously, I voted before in the past for more state, local elections, but first time voting for a presidential election. To be able to do your part felt really cool and empowering,” Gauff told The National at the WTA Finals.
Voting for the next US president is not the only bit of 'adulting' – as the kids call it these days – Gauff has been doing lately. She recently bought a house for herself and moved out from her parents’ home.
“Cheers to being a homeowner at 20. All glory to God,” Gauff posted on her Instagram, with a photo of her favourite room in her new place.
“I just felt like this was a time for me to move out,” Gauff revealed.
“But I'm still in the same city as my parents, and my parents have a court at home, so I practise there still. So it feels somewhat the same.
“Obviously, I'm living alone, so I'm just trying to learn how to cook more, something I never really had to do living with both parents who like to cook. So it's been something that I've been experimenting with, and had some mostly successes, some failures.”
Gauff broke out on to the tennis scene when she was just 15 years old, storming through to the Wimbledon fourth round, as a qualifier, and defeating her idol Venus Williams en route.
She became a grand slam champion at 19 – last year at the US Open – and has qualified for the WTA Finals as one of the best eight players in the world for a third consecutive season.
Experiencing so much success at such a young age means Gauff has had to mature way faster than others of her generation and deal with way more scrutiny as well.
If Gauff has a bad serving day, the internet goes up in arms against her. If her forehand isn’t firing, the critical tweets pour in.
In the Netflix documentary, Starting 5, which follows five NBA players throughout the 2023-24 season, Boston Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla was asked about the unfair criticism his star forward Jayson Tatum has to deal with. Mazzulla cuts off the interviewer to correct them and say, “gets to deal with”, not “has to deal with”.
Mazzulla described that criticism as the “ultimate compliment”, which comes with wanting to be one of the greats. Gauff’s sentiments regarding her own experience facing criticism echoes that mentality.
“I honestly think maybe just because of how I entered the scene – people are very critical of me. I take it as a compliment,” she said.
“Maybe they're critical about people that they feel like can do better, so I just try to be better.
“I feel like, just certain comments, I guess maybe another player would maybe do the same result as me and I get crucified for it and they get applauded. So it's tough sometimes.
“And sometimes I do want to clap back, but I just try to remember, when I win, I’ll be like, that's going to be my clap back. So I do see it. It does motivate me.”
This 2024 campaign has come with lots of lessons learnt for Gauff, who entered the summer having to defend titles in Washington DC, Cincinnati, and the US Open.
She wasn’t able to replicate her results from last season on home soil but rebounded nicely in October with a solid Asian swing that included a WTA 1000 title run in Beijing and a semi-final showing in Wuhan.
“Just learning to deal with pressure, which is something I've always dealt with, but obviously, because of all my results last year and winning the US Open and coming in as defending grand slam champion, I put a lot of pressure on myself. And I realised it's not that serious,” said Gauff, when asked about her biggest lessons from 2024.
“You're always going to be defending something. If you want to win, you're going to be defending the next year. So I think for me, I just kind of try to treat it as like an evolutionary process.
“And also learn – again, I learnt this last year, I could turn my season around any moment, and I had to relearn it again this year. So some lessons, I guess you have to keep learning until they stick. So hopefully this time it sticks, but probably not,” she adds with a chuckle.
Gauff was recently tagged in a social media post by Venus Williams, who was celebrating the 30-year anniversary of her pro debut. In her post, Williams wrote about bringing “beads, braids, and the beginning of a game never seen before in tennis”.
She said that day changed her life and although she didn’t know it at the time, at just 14 years old, it would change the lives of many others as well. She tagged her younger sister Serena, Gauff, and Naomi Osaka, who are all women of colour who no doubt benefitted from Venus’ legacy.
“Obviously I'm someone who wears braids a lot, and seeing that she was able to do that 30 years ago, maybe where the space wasn't as receptive of this type of hair, is important,” said Gauff.
“Just her legacy, I hope to do half of what she's done for, not only just tennis, but prize money equality, women's equality, racial equality, all of that. She's someone that I look up to a lot when it comes to that.”
In line with that, Gauff has been vocal about the positives that can come out of the WTA’s first venture into Saudi Arabia.
She believes bringing the world’s best female tennis players to the kingdom can help empower young girls and women, and while she acknowledges a tournament can’t change everything, it can be the start of subsequent change.
Gauff fielded multiple questions this week in Riyadh from journalists representing western media, who view the WTA’s move to stage its crown jewel tournament in Saudi Arabia as controversial.
Gauff’s responses were measured, and focused on wanting to experience Saudi for herself, instead of relying on other people’s accounts.
There can be a double standard when it comes to how western media discusses issues in the Middle East while ignoring controversial matters taking place in their home countries, and Gauff says she is “very aware of it”.
“Being a person of colour, living especially where I live, it's definitely a double standard. Like I feel it, and not even being from here, but just even as a tennis player in this space, I feel like people are over critical of me because of that,” said Gauff.
“I don't like to always deep dive into it, because then it opens a lot of doors. But yes, I do feel that. And yes, I do know, being from especially America, like we’re not saints either.
“So I do think that in general, it is a very over critical situation. And for me, I have no problem with criticism, but you have to be able to see your own faults.
“That's why I think for me, when I made the decision to come here [to Saudi Arabia], I wanted to see how it is for myself. And when you look at history, and you look at the changes that have been made, there's always going to be backlash and opposition to it.
“If you look at almost every groundbreaking decision in history, it started with some sort of change. And sports is the most peaceful and easiest way to just start that.
“Obviously, we're not going to change everything, but it's the start and it’s the seed that’s being planted and hopefully we’ll see the tree grow.”
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
The five pillars of Islam
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
How England have scored their set-piece goals in Russia
Three Penalties
v Panama, Group Stage (Harry Kane)
v Panama, Group Stage (Kane)
v Colombia, Last 16 (Kane)
Four Corners
v Tunisia, Group Stage (Kane, via John Stones header, from Ashley Young corner)
v Tunisia, Group Stage (Kane, via Harry Maguire header, from Kieran Trippier corner)
v Panama, Group Stage (Stones, header, from Trippier corner)
v Sweden, Quarter-Final (Maguire, header, from Young corner)
One Free-Kick
v Panama, Group Stage (Stones, via Jordan Henderson, Kane header, and Raheem Sterling, from Tripper free-kick)
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The five pillars of Islam
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Sui Dhaaga: Made in India
Director: Sharat Katariya
Starring: Varun Dhawan, Anushka Sharma, Raghubir Yadav
3.5/5
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
The years Ramadan fell in May
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
Three ways to boost your credit score
Marwan Lutfi says the core fundamentals that drive better payment behaviour and can improve your credit score are:
1. Make sure you make your payments on time;
2. Limit the number of products you borrow on: the more loans and credit cards you have, the more it will affect your credit score;
3. Don't max out all your debts: how much you maximise those credit facilities will have an impact. If you have five credit cards and utilise 90 per cent of that credit, it will negatively affect your score.
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 247hp at 6,500rpm
Torque: 370Nm from 1,500-3,500rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 7.8L/100km
Price: from Dh94,900
On sale: now
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Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, semi-final result:
Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona
Liverpool win 4-3 on aggregate
Champions Legaue final: June 1, Madrid
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
The biog
Family: He is the youngest of five brothers, of whom two are dentists.
Celebrities he worked on: Fabio Canavaro, Lojain Omran, RedOne, Saber Al Rabai.
Where he works: Liberty Dental Clinic
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
Zayed Sustainability Prize
If you go
Flight connections to Ulaanbaatar are available through a variety of hubs, including Seoul and Beijing, with airlines including Mongolian Airlines and Korean Air. While some nationalities, such as Americans, don’t need a tourist visa for Mongolia, others, including UAE citizens, can obtain a visa on arrival, while others including UK citizens, need to obtain a visa in advance. Contact the Mongolian Embassy in the UAE for more information.
Nomadic Road offers expedition-style trips to Mongolia in January and August, and other destinations during most other months. Its nine-day August 2020 Mongolia trip will cost from $5,250 per person based on two sharing, including airport transfers, two nights’ hotel accommodation in Ulaanbaatar, vehicle rental, fuel, third party vehicle liability insurance, the services of a guide and support team, accommodation, food and entrance fees; nomadicroad.com
A fully guided three-day, two-night itinerary at Three Camel Lodge costs from $2,420 per person based on two sharing, including airport transfers, accommodation, meals and excursions including the Yol Valley and Flaming Cliffs. A return internal flight from Ulaanbaatar to Dalanzadgad costs $300 per person and the flight takes 90 minutes each way; threecamellodge.com
Four-day collections of TOH
Day Indian Rs (Dh)
Thursday 500.75 million (25.23m)
Friday 280.25m (14.12m)
Saturday 220.75m (11.21m)
Sunday 170.25m (8.58m)
Total 1.19bn (59.15m)
(Figures in millions, approximate)
UK-EU trade at a glance
EU fishing vessels guaranteed access to UK waters for 12 years
Co-operation on security initiatives and procurement of defence products
Youth experience scheme to work, study or volunteer in UK and EU countries
Smoother border management with use of e-gates
Cutting red tape on import and export of food
ICC Women's T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier 2025, Thailand
UAE fixtures
May 9, v Malaysia
May 10, v Qatar
May 13, v Malaysia
May 15, v Qatar
May 18 and 19, semi-finals
May 20, final
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Key recommendations
- Fewer criminals put behind bars and more to serve sentences in the community, with short sentences scrapped and many inmates released earlier.
- Greater use of curfews and exclusion zones to deliver tougher supervision than ever on criminals.
- Explore wider powers for judges to punish offenders by blocking them from attending football matches, banning them from driving or travelling abroad through an expansion of ‘ancillary orders’.
- More Intensive Supervision Courts to tackle the root causes of crime such as alcohol and drug abuse – forcing repeat offenders to take part in tough treatment programmes or face prison.
Getting there
The flights
Emirates and Etihad fly to Johannesburg or Cape Town daily. Flights cost from about Dh3,325, with a flying time of 8hours and 15 minutes. From there, fly South African Airlines or Air Namibia to Namibia’s Windhoek Hosea Kutako International Airport, for about Dh850. Flying time is 2 hours.
The stay
Wilderness Little Kulala offers stays from £460 (Dh2,135) per person, per night. It is one of seven Wilderness Safari lodges in Namibia; www.wilderness-safaris.com.
Skeleton Coast Safaris’ four-day adventure involves joining a very small group in a private plane, flying to some of the remotest areas in the world, with each night spent at a different camp. It costs from US$8,335.30 (Dh30,611); www.skeletoncoastsafaris.com
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
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Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Ad Astra
Director: James Gray
Stars: Brad Pitt, Tommy Lee Jones
Five out of five stars
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if you go
The flights
The closest international airport to the TMB trail is Geneva (just over an hour’s drive from the French ski town of Chamonix where most people start and end the walk). Direct flights from the UAE to Geneva are available with Etihad and Emirates from about Dh2,790 including taxes.
The trek
The Tour du Mont Blanc takes about 10 to 14 days to complete if walked in its entirety, but by using the services of a tour operator such as Raw Travel, a shorter “highlights” version allows you to complete the best of the route in a week, from Dh6,750 per person. The trails are blocked by snow from about late October to early May. Most people walk in July and August, but be warned that trails are often uncomfortably busy at this time and it can be very hot. The prime months are June and September.
