Tennis commentary is supposed to help viewers follow the action. During a WTA Finals doubles match in Indian Wells, many fans felt that former American tennis player and now a broadcaster CoCo Vandeweghe’s analysis did the opposite, and they did not hold back in saying so. What followed was a wave of brutal reactions directly targeted at Tennis Channel. 

The former world No. 9 was on the call for Tennis Channel as Katerina Siniakova and Taylor Townsend took on Cristina Bucsa and Nicole Melichar-Martinez in a decisive group match. What came out of the booth left plenty of viewers baffled. In this extended period of commentary, Vandeweghe made a string of remarks that were not exactly on-point, such as the line that went viral: that winning was merely a matter of moving forward. 

She talked at length about Townsend’s energy, her status as a mother and the “poker card faces” of the players, often without reaching a clear point. Many listeners found the delivery unstructured and difficult to follow. 

The 34-year-old retired in 2023 and, since then she has take up the role. Currently, she works with three media houses: BBC, ESPN and Tennis Channel. She started as a studio analyst, then went on to host podcasts. In 2024, she covered her first Grand Slam at Wimbledon, and this year she was there with ESPN for the Australian Open, Wimbledon, and the US Open. With three years of experience in the field, she is not a novice in the role, and therefore, the viewers could not overlook her. 

At this year’s WTA Finals, she was assigned only the doubles matches, with Lindsay Davenport and Chanda Rubin handling the singles and Madison Keys appearing occasionally. 

The doubles match itself was lopsided and interrupted, with Siniakova and Townsend dominating the first set, 6-2, and holding a 4-2 lead in the second before Melichar-Martinez had to retire with an injury, sending the second seeds to the semifinals. 

The one-sided contest did not give the commentators much to work with their craft. Even so, the volume of criticism aimed at one broadcaster was striking. 

One viewer took to X and wrote a short and pointed message, suggesting the commentator was overdoing it. “CoCo Vandeweghe, choose your words carefully. You are not being paid by the word,” they wrote, tagging Tennis Channel.

Another zeroed in on a recurring error, questioning why Vandeweghe kept mangling one of the player’s names. 

“Someone there please call CoCo Vandeweghe in the booth and tell her Cristina Bucsa’s last name is not pronounced ‘busca,’” they posted. “Then ask her to stop talking so much. Her commentary is not adding any value.”

“Omg somebody shut CoCo Vandeweghe up on Tennis Channel,” one fan wrote on X. “She is annoying as F and sounds drunk.” It was a harsh verdict but a reflection on how jarring some found the delivery.

One viewer did not criticize the 2018 US Open doubles champion’s commentary but did flag the mispronunciation of the Spaniard. 

“At the current doubles match in Indian Wells for the WTA Finals, CoCo Vandeweghe gives interesting commentary, better than that for the singles matches,” they wrote. “But why does she keep calling Bucsa as ‘Busca’?”

“What is going on with CoCo Vandeweghe on Tennis Channel commentary right now for the WTA Finals?” they asked. “Something is not right!” The user could not pinpoint what exactly was going wrong with the commentary, but supports the common sentiment going on in the air. 

Neither Tennis Channel nor Vandeweghe has responded publicly to the criticism. The booth will roll on through the business end of the WTA Finals.

For now, Townsend and Siniakova are eyeing their maiden WTA Finals title, locking horns with Gabriela Dabrowski and Luisa Stefani in the semifinals on Saturday.