Coco Gauff takes issue with post-match outburst being broadcast

After falling to Elina Svitolina in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open on Tuesday morning, Coco Gauff took her frustrations out on her racket in a private moment.

At least Gauff thought it was a private moment.

But as the 21-year-old repeatedly smashed her racket into the ground inside the match call area at Melbourne Park, cameras were, in fact, rolling. And it didn’t take long for the footage to make its way to social media, prompting Gauff to speak out on what she viewed as an invasion of privacy, especially considering that was actively attempting to avoid being filmed.

“I tried to go somewhere where there was no cameras. I have a thing with the broadcast, I feel like certain moments — the same thing happened to Aryna (Sabalenka) after I played her in the final of the U.S. Open — I feel like they don’t need to broadcast,” Gauff told reporters. “I tried to go somewhere where I thought there wasn’t a camera because I don’t necessarily like breaking rackets.”

The two-time Grand Slam title winner noted that she had promised after the French Open that she wouldn’t smash rackets in front of the camera again. Nevertheless, the lasting image from her defeat in Australia is now her doing just that, despite her best efforts to avoid the moment being broadcast.

“I tried to go somewhere that they wouldn’t broadcast it, but obviously they did,” she said. “Maybe some conversations can be had because I feel like at this tournament, the only private place we have is the locker room.”

Gauff’s frustration is understandable, as such emotions are inevitable in a sport as personally intense as tennis. It’s one thing to be filmed smashing your court when you know the whole world is watching; another to have the moment broadcast when you tried to prevent that from happening.

Yet despite not wanting it to have been public, Gauff also doesn’t regret the outburst.

“I don’t want to lash out on my team. They’re good people, they don’t deserve that. And I know I’m emotional, so I just took the minute to go and do that,” she said. “I don’t think it’s a bad thing. I don’t try to do it out on the court and in front of kids. I do know I need to let out that emotion. Otherwise, I’m just going to be snappy with the people around me and I don’t want to do that, because like I said, they don’t deserve it.

“They did their best. I did mine. Just need to let the frustration out.”