Coco Gauff proved unstoppable even with a brief interruption due to illness. During her match against Sorana Cirstea at the Madrid Open on Sunday, April 26, Gauff required a medical timeout in the second set after feeling unwell. She quickly recovered and went on to win the match with a score of 4-6, 7-5, 6-1.
After the match, Gauff shared with Sky Sports, “I donât know how I got it done. Just dealing with a lot of trying to keep my food down. But once I threw up â and I was able to throw up after the first set â I felt a bit better.”
Reflecting on the challenging match, Gauff said, “It was just a tough match. I think I got the Madrid stomach virus thatâs going around. Iâm usually someone who doesnât get sick. My luck today just wasnât good.”
In contrast, Iga Swiatek had to withdraw from her match just a day earlier due to similar health issues, having taken a medical timeout before eventually leaving the court. Swiatek told Tennis.com, “Iâm sure Iâll be fine in a couple of days, but I had zero energy. I just felt really bad physically and yesterday, even worse. So I thought maybe today itâs gonna be better, but maybe it was, but not enough to play a match.”
She added, “The symptoms are not something you want to hear about.”
Coco Gauff reacts after victory over Sorana Cirstea at the Madrid Open David Ramos/Getty Images
The tournament has seen nearly half a dozen players withdraw due to a circulating illness. Gauff admitted, “When I actually threw up on the court, that was a little bit embarrassing. Then after that first game and the second, I was like that took everything out of me. Iâm someone who doesnât like to pull out [of matches]. I donât like to do that unless I really feel like I have no other options.”
She added, “So the plan was to always just try to finish, even if it ended up with me, just playing just to get through it.”
No. 2-ranked Coco Gauff was noticeably off her game in her shocking first-round loss at Wimbledon on Tuesday, July 1, to unseeded Dayana Yastremska. Gauff, 21, lost 7-6 (3), 6-1, and finished with 29 unforced errors and nine double-faults. After the match, she opened up about what went wrong, saying her French Open win last [âŠ]
Gauff is set to compete against Linda Noskova, ranked No. 13, on Monday, April 27.
Jannik Sinner, the top-ranked player on the men’s side, expressed caution regarding the stomach virus. “I come match days a little bit earlier, but practice days are very late,” Sinner said. “I practice, and then I get away. But this is how I do every tournament.”
He further mentioned, “I donât know if itâs something thatâs just around here or in general, but this can happen. When one gets sick, youâre always quite close to each other in the dining rooms and in the gym.”
