He Didn’t Have as Great of a Serve in the Beginning” — Coco Gauff Hopes to Emulate Novak Djokovic in Overcoming Her Serving Woes

Coco Gauff has never been shy about self-reflection, and ahead of another demanding stretch of the WTA season, the American star made a telling admission: her serve needs work — and she’s looking to Novak Djokovic as her blueprint for fixing it. The reigning US Open champion referenced Djokovic’s early-career struggles on serve, and how the Serb later transformed it into one of the most reliable weapons in tennis. For Gauff, the message is simple: flaws aren’t the end — they’re a phase.

“He didn’t have as great of a serve in the beginning,” Gauff said, noting how Djokovic’s progress gives her confidence. “He figured it out. I can too.” Coming from a 20-year-old who is already a Slam winner and World No. 3, this doesn’t sound like insecurity — it sounds like ambition with a plan.

Gauff’s serve has been a talking point since her teenage debut — at times electric, at times erratic. Double faults, sporadic tosses, and patches of nerves have betrayed her otherwise mature game. Yet, unlike players who collapse under technical scrutiny, Gauff confronts it. She hires, studies, tweaks, and learns. Watching Djokovic evolve from a shaky server to a fortress was all the reassurance she needed that technical flaws are not destiny.

Djokovic famously rebuilt his kinetic chain, improved his precision, and turned serves from a liability into a platform for dominance. If Gauff can replicate even a portion of that curve, the women’s tour has a real problem on its hands. Because Gauff already wins a ton of matches with a serve she’s still unsure of — imagine her once it’s clean and bulletproof.

What makes this moment compelling is that Gauff isn’t comparing herself to a peer — she is benchmarking against the most complete champion of the modern era. That says something about her ceiling and her mindset. She’s not satisfied scraping by; she wants inevitability.

Coco Gauff is already one of the sport’s biggest winners and biggest draws. But by publicly aiming to follow Djokovic’s arc — from serve frustration to serve mastery — she’s also signaling something bigger: she plans to be here long enough to evolve, not just trend. If history repeats itself the Novak way, the WTA may be witnessing the birth of its next long-term ruler.