American tennis sensation Coco Gauff, who became the WTA World No. 1 in doubles in August 2022, has weighed in on who she considers the “best doubles players” on tour. Her comments come as fellow American Taylor Townsend recently ascended to the world No. 1 doubles ranking.
Gauff’s Perspective on Elite Doubles Talent
During a pre-tournament interview at the Canadian Open, Gauff was asked about Taylor Townsend achieving the top doubles ranking. Gauff expressed her happiness for Townsend, stating, “Yeah, it’s super cool. Well, I’ve known Taylor for a long long time and I always root for her.” She continued, “I’ve always considered her, um, one of the best doubles players, probably right there with Siniakova, like the best on tour. So, it’s great to see that ranking kind of match where, um, I think a lot of players see her as.”
Gauff’s high praise for both Taylor Townsend and Kateřina Siniaková highlights her respect for their exceptional doubles prowess. Siniaková is a highly decorated doubles player, and Townsend recently won the 2025 Australian Open doubles title with Siniaková, further solidifying her status.
The Journey to Doubles World No. 1 for Townsend
Taylor Townsend’s rise to the world No. 1 doubles ranking marks a significant milestone in her career. She achieved this feat after her performance at the Citi DC Open, partnering with Zhang Shuai to reach the final. This propelled her past her regular partner Siniaková to claim the top spot.
Townsend’s journey has been marked by resilience, overcoming obstacles and consistently performing at a high level in doubles. Her compatriots, including Coco Gauff, Madison Keys, and Ben Shelton, celebrated her achievement. Gauff, in particular, posted a congratulatory message on Instagram, referring to Townsend as “TT1”.
Gauff’s Own Doubles Success and Recent Partnerships
Coco Gauff herself reached the pinnacle of doubles tennis on August 15, 2022, becoming the 46th WTA player and 11th American woman to hold the World No. 1 doubles ranking. This achievement came after she won the National Bank Open in Toronto with her then-partner, Jessica Pegula.
Gauff and Pegula had a successful partnership, winning multiple titles, including the Qatar TotalEnergies Open in Doha and the San Diego Open in 2022, and reaching the French Open doubles final in 2022. They were open about their ambition to compete for a medal at the Olympics. However, they decided to end their consistent partnership for the rest of the 2024 season, with Gauff citing the demanding week-in, week-out schedule when playing both singles and doubles.
Exploring New Doubles Avenues
Since parting ways with Pegula, Gauff has explored new doubles partnerships. At the 2025 Italian Open, she teamed up with Alexandra Eala. Gauff acknowledged that she had to apologize to Eala multiple times during their run because she was still finding her footing in doubles after playing less of the format. Despite this, Gauff praised Eala’s aggressive style of play and called her “a killer in doubles”.
More recently, Gauff secured her first Grand Slam doubles title at Roland Garros 2024, partnering with Kateřina Siniaková. This victory marked Gauff’s third Grand Slam doubles final appearance, having been a runner-up at the 2021 US Open with Caty McNally and the 2022 French Open with Jessica Pegula. The partnership with Siniaková proved to be highly effective, with Gauff noting their instant success despite not having played together before the tournament.
Gauff’s ability to adapt and succeed with various partners underscores her versatility and innate doubles talent, solidifying her position as one of the most formidable players on the WTA tour in both singles and doubles.
No Comment! Be the first one.