Coco Gauff’s Mental Tricks Paid Off in French Open Triumph

Paris: Ever wondered what secret mindset powered Coco Gauff to her second Grand Slam title? The 21-year-old American, who had already won the US Open, became the youngest American woman to win the French Open since Serena Williams in 2002 — and she credits two unique mental strategies for her latest success. Coco is the youngest woman (since Serena Williams achieved the feat in 2002) to win US Open and French Open titles at 21 years of age.

Gauff, the world number two, defeated world number one Aryna Sabalenka in a thrilling final on Saturday:
7-6 (7-5), 2-6, 6-4, to claim the 2025 French Open women’s singles title.

Knowing Sabalenka was in top form, Gauff felt she needed something extra to fuel her belief and focus. Inspired by Gabby Thomas, the 200m Paris Olympics champion, Gauff decided to take a page from her book. Thomas had famously written multiple times, “I will be an Olympic champion” before her victory. Drawing from that, Gauff revealed she wrote down eight times on Friday night,
“I will be the 2025 French Open Champion.”

Gauff also shared an Instagram message she had posted four years ago where she dreamt of becoming the French Open champion.
“That dream became a reality,” she said.

In a post-match interview on Sunday, Gauff stated,

“Gabby wrote that she’d be Olympic champion—and she made it come true. That mindset inspired me. I did the same.”

The second technique Gauff used was mirror affirmation. On Friday night, she stood in front of a mirror and repeatedly spoke to herself as if she had already won the title.

“I looked at myself and kept saying I was going to be the champion. That mirror talk helped boost my self-belief. And it worked.”

These two mental preparation techniques — writing affirmations and mirror self-talk — helped Gauff conquer her nerves, focus on her goal, and emerge victorious on one of tennis’s biggest stages.