Coco Gauff and Ajla Tomljanovic raised the bar for their competitors at the 2025 US Open. Despite winning the first set by 6-4, the no. 3 seed faced some turbulence in the second set. The duo had to fight to break the tie, and in the end, the set went in favor of the Croatian star. And finally, Gauff ended the match by winning the final set with the scoreboard reading 7-5. While the audience kept cheering for the athletes, they couldn’t steer clear of sending some heat towards the commentators. 

US Open Tennis was quick to share the visuals of the game on X, as Gauff and Tomljanovic entered a tiebreak in the second set. The caption of the X post read, “She and Coco Gauff are headed to a decider!” And when Coco Gauff’s return hit the net, the commentators, including Chris Evert, reacted to the fault. 

In another instance, during the second set, when the scores were tallied 5-4 in favor of Gauff, the players engaged in a quick exchange near the net. Tomljanovic sent a fast ball to Gauff’s side, but the American returned it, only to get a return from the Croatian. But Tomljanovic seemed to have undermined Gauff, who returned the shot, leaving her opponent standing. That extracted a remark from Chris Fowler. He said, “She hit the shot and didn’t cover it! Doesn’t she know how fast Gauff is?” Another instance came up when Tomljanovic returned a shot and narrowly missed the lines. Evert deemed it as nothing but “ridiculous.”

While Gauff and Tomljanovic were going toe to toe in the second set, in an instant, the script flipped and Gauff had Ajla pinned down at 5-4 at which point, Evert said, “some extra pace from Gauff in the last few shots.” We aren’t discounting Coco’s reflexes that helped her claw her way to victory, but Tomljanovic’s efforts were just as commendable if not more. As a commentator, you are expected to be unbiased. But unfortunately, Fowler and Evert missed the memo on that one.

And in case you’re wondering, this wasn’t the first time Evert came into the spotlight for bad commentary. She received a boatload of backlash at the French Open while reviewing Alexander Zverev’s game. The story was similar to her commentary at the 2025 Wimbledon. This time, too, the fanbase didn’t appreciate the commentary at all. And it was arguably justified. It sounded as if the commentators weren’t in sync and spoke over each other. And the outcome? Some severe backlash from the tennis community. 

Soon after the US Open Tennis shared the post on X, the fans swarmed the comments section. And all they did was criticize the commentary booth for its subpar announcements. Let’s see what the fans had to say. 

Fans aren’t happy with the commentary for Coco Gauff vs. Ajla Tomljanović

One of the fans acknowledged ESPN covering the 2025 US Open. But the excitement subsided with Evert’s commentary. The comment read, “I love that ESPN is covering the U.S. Open, but Chrissy Everett is the worst ever. Please remove her from the telecast.” Another fan added to the sentiment and wrote, “Chris evert is dumb. Almost makes this unwatchable.” One more fan claimed, “The announcers on here are sooo ridiculous!”

The fans had the same thought while reacting to one of Rennae Stubbs’ X posts. Serena Williams’ ex-coach praised the Croatian. But one fan reacted to that, quoting, “I wish you would replace Chris Evert as commentator. Painful to listen to her bias, dismissing Ajla, who playing her a– off!” Another fan commented on that, claiming, “Some of these commentators are so biased. Ever so often they just write off opponents, and by now we all know the game is played on the court and anything can happen.” 

Additionally, one more fan highlighted the big win for Gauff. But the commentary by Chris Evert and Chris Fowler turned it all sour. The X post read, “Phenomenal match and gritty win for @CocoGauff. Would have been even more fun to watch if Chris Evert and Chris Fowler didn’t talk over the entire match, often about unrelated topics.” The fans seemed to have made up their minds against the commentary booth. But if you want more on-court drama, head to our EssentiallySports Live Blog now.