Andy Murray’s former coach Mark Petchey has made a bold statement by claiming that Coco Gauff as the best WTA athlete ever. The tennis coach named Steffi Graf as the second best and totally snubbed Venus Williams and Martina Navratilova. Women’s tennis has seen its fair share of remarkable athletes throughout the years, with names like Steffi Graf, Serena Williams and Venus Williams leaving a mark on the tennis history. Hence, this statement by Petchey has attracted a lot of attention.

Coco Gauff is still only 19 years of age and has just won her first-ever Grand Slam title. Gauff winning her first Grand Slam has made many believe that she is the heir to Serena Williams, but the teenager still has a long way to go.

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Coco Gauff is the best ever WTA athlete according to Mark Petchey

Mark Petchey has made a bold statement claiming that Coco Gauff is the greatest women’s tennis athlete ever. The British tennis coach was comparing Gauff to Steffi Graf, who he felt was the second best athlete ever. The former world number 1, Graf, won 22 major titles in her illustrious career.

When comparing the two, Petchey claimed that Coco Gauff is experiencing a different version of tennis as compared to Graff. Petchey added that tennis has evolved over the years and the game is now at a higher and quicker level. With all these things put into perspective, the British coach gave his nod to Gauff as the greatest WTA athlete of all time.

“I think Coco Gauff is the best athlete to play tennis. You cannot tell me the sport is played at the same pace as it was when Steffi was playing. The sport moves on and I don’t think we should compare the current generation of players to the GOATs because they were the best in their era. I personally think, Coco Gauff, looking at her right now, with the speed at which the game is played at.. she is the best best women’s tennis athlete we have ever seen.”

Coco Gauff is still in the early stages of her professional career and Mark Petchey’s statement feels farfetched. Former players such as Venus Williams and Martina Navratilova have made an impact on tennis, and calling a 19-year-old the greatest WTA athlete ever can be considered disrespectful.

Gauff still has a long way to go

While Coco Gauff’s talent and athleticism have been obvious since her breakout performance at the French Open 2021, it is important to remember the long-lasting legacies of players such as Steffi Graf, Venus Williams, and Martina Navratilova. These tennis legends have proved that consistency and longevity are the most important things for a player to succeed.

Gauff will need to keep adding to her US Open title and show a lot more consistency and longevity to match the records set by the GOATs of the sport.