Australian Open contenders: Laura Robson weighs in on Coco Gauff and Iga Swiatek’s chances - "She already looks incredibly confident"

Laura Robson backs Coco Gauff as a strong contender for the Australian Open title following her impressive performance at the United Cup. The former world No. 27 believes that Gauff is “a completely different player” compared to last year’s US Open, where she suffered an early exit in the Round of 16.

The 20-year-old American kicked off the season in style, leading Team USA to victory against Poland at the United Cup. Along the way, Gauff secured five consecutive wins, including straight-set victories over Karolina Muchova and Iga Swiatek. "She already looks incredibly confident," Robson told Eurosport.

Is Gauff ready to dethrone Sabalenka at Australian Open?

Robson highlighted Gauff's victory against Swiatek as proof of her progress, particularly after a rollercoaster 2024 season. The young star struggled during the US hardcourt swing, where she had significant points to defend but suffered several early losses.

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"The match against Swiatek (at the United Cup), she went into it trailing 11-2 in the head-to-head. At times, you thought it was just a terrible matchup for her with no chance of winning, but she's transformed her game over the last few months,” said the 2012 Olympic silver medallist. "Her forehand no longer feels like a weakness, and her movement is among the best in the game, making her incredibly hard to beat."

Gauff started 2024 with 10 consecutive wins and a title in Auckland but fell in the Australian Open semifinals to eventual champion Aryna Sabalenka. This time, Gauff seeks redemption, and Robson sees her as a strong contender to dethrone Sabalenka. "Coco has suddenly become a completely different player since the summer at the US Open, and she’s now one of the favourites for a Slam title again."

Swiatek’s transformation under Wim Fissette coaching

Robson also commented on Iga Swiatek, who has struggled at the Australian Open in recent years, exiting in the fourth round in 2023 and the third round in 2024. However, Robson believes Swiatek may have found solutions to improve her Melbourne results.

"What she's working on is slowing down the game when facing big hitters and avoiding being drawn into their style of play. I saw her execute this well last week against Elena Rybakina [at the United Cup], sticking to her game plan. She’ll likely aim to do the same if she faces Sabalenka."

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A key factor for Swiatek has been changes to her coaching team. In late 2024, she parted ways with Tomasz Wiktorowski and hired high-profile coach Wim Fissette, who previously worked with Naomi Osaka, Zheng Qinwen, and Victoria Azarenka.

"Wim Fissette has a huge amount of experience," Robson said. "I know him well from his time with Jo Konta and Azarenka. Although they only started working together at the end of last year, you can already see adjustments in her forehand and serve."

"These changes aim to improve her performance on faster hard courts and surfaces, as she’s already dominant on clay. These adjustments were needed, and I believe they'll make a huge difference,” Robson concluded.

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