Caitlin Clark overlooked as Coco Gauff taking inspiration from WNBA rival

Coco Gauff is drawing strength from Caitlin Clark's on-court rival, A'ja Wilson , as she strives to keep a level head amidst a rollercoaster year.

The tennis sensation, fresh off her victory at the China Open, has powered through to the quarter-finals of the Wuhan Open, eyeing a back-to-back title triumph.

An avid basketball enthusiast, Gauff has found motivation in WNBA star Wilson, despite Wilson's Las Vegas Aces suffering a playoff loss to the New York Liberty recently, dashing their hopes for a historic third consecutive championship. Reflecting on her own journey in tennis, Gauff shared insights gleaned from Wilson's attitude after the defeat.

"People don't realize people have great moments in sports and bad moments," Gauff remarked. "It doesn't mean anything. I took inspiration from A'ja Wilson. Back to back champions. People wanted them to three-peat.

"She's kind of like, 'It's hard to stay winning all the time'. You need to go through losses to realize what you need to do to evolve. Tennis fans need to be more accepting of that."

Despite a challenging year, Gauff, who soared to the world's top two in June following her French Open semi-final appearance and doubles win, remains focused on finishing the season strong.

At Wimbledon, she took an early bow in the fourth round and then saw an abrupt exit at the Olympics. To add to a challenging year, Gauff could not retain her title at the U.S. Open, facing defeat against fellow American Emma Navarro, yet she bounced back brilliantly at the China Open.

"When the season is as long as it is, it's very hard to play great tennis from January to November," she confided. "People do it, but it's hard to do it year in, year out. There's obviously going to be a bad two tournaments, then you're able to pick it back up."

As Gauff continues her campaign in Wuhan this week, fresh off her China Open victory, she has already dispatched Viktoriya Tomova and Marta Kostyuk to book a quarterfinal date with Magda Linette on Friday.