Coco Gauff insisted she had “no regrets” over the missed drop shot that denied her a place in the Wimbledon women’s singles final on Thursday.
The American came within one point of victory against Karolina Muchova before missing a forehand drop shot at 9-8 in the deciding-set tiebreak.
Muchova capitalised to complete a remarkable comeback and win 2-6, 6-1, 7-6(10).
Reflecting on the heartbreaking defeat, Gauff admitted the closing moments would stay with her for some time but chose to focus on the positives from her campaign.
“It was a lot of positives. Obviously I got super close,” she said.
“I’m definitely going to think about [those last few points] for a while. But overall it was a positive tournament for me. It’s a match I’ll remember. It’s tough to digest, but I’m happy.”
Gauff also defended her decision to attempt the drop shot, saying it had been one of her most effective weapons throughout the match.
“People who don’t watch tennis are going to ask why I played the drop shot.
“At the end of the day, that’s the choice I made. Was it the right one in that moment? Maybe not. But if I had made it, everyone would have said what a clutch shot it was.
“That’s just tennis. You lose some points off margins.”
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The 22-year-old added that the experience would ultimately make her a better player.
“It takes moments like this to learn from and have a clearer plan of what I want to do.
“At the end of the day, I left it all out there. I don’t have any regrets.
“There are points where I could have made better decisions, but that’s how you learn and become a better player.”
