She was unable to defend the US Open title, dropped down to sixth in WTA rankings and seemed very low on confidence as parts of her game repeatedly failed her.

Now one coaching change later and Coco Gauff is on an eight-match winning streak, back to number four in the rankings and is aiming for a second successive title after winning in Beijing on Sunday.

Andy Roddick discusses changes made to Coco Gauff’s game

It is well-documented that Gauff’s two biggest weaknesses on court are her second serve and forehand. These are areas that are targeted by her opponents and they are huge contributing factors to many of her defeats.

But Andy Roddick noticed an improvement on the forehand during Gauff’s run to the China Open crown, and he had high praise for Gauff’s 6-1, 6-3 over Karolina Muchova in the Beijing final.

“Coco going through and winning that Masters 1000 on the heels of disappointment probably, not defending the US Open, maybe not playing her best, the doubles and everything else,” Roddick said on his ‘Served’ podcast.

“This was a massive rebound for her that was needed for this season, and she played great. She got through a tough one against Badosa in the semis and then, I think she played the best match that she’s played since Cincinnati last year.

“The US Open she won but there were a lot of straightforward wins even on the way to the title there. Beating Muchova, who’s in form, 6-1, 6-3… it’s the best match I’ve seen her play in a long time. The forehand was working, she was committed, massive massive rebound.”

What has Coco Gauff said about her new coach Matt Daly?

Gauff decided to replace Brad Gilbert with Matt Daly as her new coach following a poor run of results over the summer. They are working on improving her consistency, especially on the forehand and with the serve.

But following Gauff’s victory over Marta Kostyuk at the Wuhan Open, she hinted at more changes being made now she is under the tutelage of Daly.

“Yeah, I saw they found that,“ Gauff said about reaching the Wuhan Open quarter-finals. “He has a lot of expertise in that area.

“Honestly, not just that. He does really good at tactical stuff, mental side, too. But yeah, Matt is great. We’re changing stuff. I don’t want to give too much of what’s going on, but there are changes happening.”

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