After Coco Gauff went on a social media blockade and acknowledged that she was frequently harassed, many tennis fans rallied together to support her.
In the round-robin match of the 2023 WTA Finals, Coco Gauff lost to Iga Swiatek on Wednesday, November 1. The American went on a social media blocking spree after the loss, her ninth against Swiatek. Many fans were drawn to the act, and some of Coco Gauff’s own fans pointed out that she had mistakenly blocked them.
Gauff recently took to Twitter to defend herself after losing to fellow countrywoman and doubles partner Jessica Pegula 2-6, 1-6 in the semifinals of the WTA Finals. The American youngster said that after experiencing frequent online harassment, she took the necessary precautions to safeguard her mental health.
In answer to a user’s request to unblock her fans, she said: “I only block people who are negative, not my fans. I don’t search for these pages. It comes on my timeline. when you deal with the daily harassment I deal with every single day. Death threats, racism, body shaming, etc. are exhausting. So I try my best to spare myself.”
Following Coco Gauff’s heartbreaking announcement, tennis fans supported her. Many thought it was appropriate. One fan posted: “The fact that she even had to address this bums me out. Players deserve better than fans who expect them to reciprocate a parasocial relationship.”
Another one replied: “I’m so sorry you have to experience such abuse; there are disturbed and disturbing people around who have unhealthy obsessions. Please continue to protect yourself, your mind, and your emotions and block, block, and block.”
The fact that she even had to address this bums me out. Players deserve better than fans who expect them to reciprocate a parasocial relationship. pic.twitter.com/VVjlzH1vWD
— Owen (@tennisnation) November 6, 2023
Coco Gauff in 2023
LWWWWLWWLW Ranked world no.3 (career-high), the American played her last match on the 4th of November when she capitulated to world no.5 Jessica Pegula 6-2 6-1 in the semifinal in Cancun (draw).
This season Coco has achieved a compiled 51-16 record. Coco clinched 4 titles in 2023 in Auckland, Washington, Cincinnati and U.S. Open.
Coco Gauff |
| Embed from Getty Images |
