American tennis star Coco Gauff has had a great year so far. At a very young age, she made a mark on the WTA Tour. Earlier this year, the 18-year-old made it to the French Open final in both singles and doubles. Furthermore, she has been consistent and made it to the top rounds of most tournaments she played.

Recently, she participated in the San Diego Open. Gauff registered a resounding win in the first round against her compatriot, Robin Montgomery. Later in the post-match interview, the world number 7 spoke about the different paths she and Robin chose in their careers and what she thinks about the way it panned out for both of them.

Coco Gauff on the impact of choosing different paths

Both Gauff and Montgomery are of similar age and belong to the same country. While Montgomery chose a more traditional path, Gauff did it differently. Today, if we look at their careers, Gauff is far ahead. She is one of the top ten tennis players in the world and is doing great. On the other hand, Montgomery is currently at 256 in the WTA rankings.

When asked if the different approach Gauff chose panned out to be better, the 18-year-old replied, “I think that everyone’s life paths are different and so her being the same age at different stages doesn’t mean anything. Essentially, I think people are going to peak at different times.”

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She further added, “I wouldn’t say that I am peaking now, but I definitely think her peak is coming and I think mine is still coming… I did have an unorthodox way to becoming a pro and for that, I am very grateful but honestly, if we look at it from a different standpoint, her being top 300 is pretty great… So I don’t think like that and I think next year she is going to have a great year if she plays like she did today.”

Iga Swiatek ends Gauff’s run at the San Diego Open

The world number one Iga Swiatek and Coco Gauff clashed for the third time this year at the San Diego Open. Unfortunately for the rising American star, the result was similar to the last three occasions. Swiatek cruised to an easy straight-set victory over the American. Earlier, Gauff made it to the quarterfinals after defeating Canadian Bianca Andreescu in straight sets. However, Swiatek yet again ended her run in the latter stages of a tournament.

Earlier this year, the two clashed for the first time in the Miami Open. Later, they faced each other in the final of the French Open and this was their third meeting.

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On all three occasions, Swiatek won in straight sets, stamping her authority over the American. It will be interesting to see if Gauff finds a way to go past Swiatek in the future.