What’s it like to work with Coco Gauff? For Pere Riba, it's more than he ever expected

Pere Riba had planned on enjoying a break from tour life after Roland Garros. Little did the Spanish coach know he was about to embark on a summer road trip like no other.

In June, the 35-year-old wrapped up a two-year partnership with Zheng Qinwen. Over the course of that successful arrangement, Riba helped guide the emerging Chinese competitor to the Top 25 as she picked up WTA Newcomer of the Year honors at the end of 2022.

“I just wanted to take some time off,” he shares by phone from New York.

That ambition was soon foiled when Corey Gauff reached out. The two conversed before Riba was connected to Corey's daughter to pick her brain and simply talk tennis. “We were on the same page, so then we agreed to start for a trial period,” Riba recalls.

Five months younger than Zheng, Coco Gauff—still just 19—presented a new challenge for Riba to consider. She has been a tour-level fixture for more than four seasons, already contested a Grand Slam singles final, been ranked inside the Top 10 since last year’s US Open, and for years has gracefully carried the heavy weight of expectations that have followed since her breakout run at 2019 Wimbledon. Every player has a unique set of strengths and weaknesses, and for Riba, the opportunity to help Gauff build on her existing gifts and fine-tune any shortcomings was one that couldn’t be passed up.

“It's amazing the potential that she has. It's like she's in the top of the rankings but still has a big margin to improve many things,” he says. “It's one of the reasons why I was really, really motivated at the moment we start to talk.”

I say many times to her, ‘Coco, you are too nice.’ She is unbelievable. Coco is 12 points from 10. Pere Riba on Coco Gauff the person

Beginning with three wins together in Eastbourne, the grass-court swing ended with back-to-back defeats—including an opening-round Wimbledon loss to Sofia Kenin. Continuing their collaboration, the two transitioned to training on hard courts. They worked on her forehand. They worked on her footwork. They worked on her serve. Their labor wasn’t about implementing “big” changes, but rather, getting Gauff to a place of complete self-assurance on the court.

“The most important thing is about the mentality. It's bringing to the court her energy. It's enjoying to play the match,” Riba says. “It's not about the result. It's about how you play. I think that Coco starts to understand that.”

On the subject of vigor, everyone welcomed an added boost when Brad Gilbert joined as a consultant in Washington, D.C. Gilbert’s track record more than speaks for itself: he coached Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick to Grand Slam title runs, and also had stints with Andy Murray and Kei Nishikori early in their careers. But there's more than one coach in Coco's corner.

For all the talk about technique, the surrounding environment is just as critical to keeping Gauff’s head on straight, believes Riba. The addition of Gilbert to a team that also includes Stephane Dal Soglio (strength and conditioning), Maria Vago (physio) and former player Jarmere Jenkins further strengthened the new vibe around her, with dad Corey leading the front.

“All the good things that everyone can bring to Coco is welcome. It's a gift,” says Riba. “Because if the energy in the team every day is good, is healthy, the player is feeling that. Everyone is doing their job really well.”

What’s followed since has been a transformative period in Gauff's still-brief career. She triumphed in Washington, D.C. to launch her North American hard-court swing with a maiden WTA 500 singles title, dismissed Wimbledon champ Marketa Vondrousova in Montreal with a second-set bagel, and defeated Iga Swiatek for the first time on her way to a first WTA 1000 singles title in Cincinnati.

With a pair of wins at the US Open so far, Gauff is currently on a 13-1 run.

As Riba has grown to know Gauff over the past few months, his initial impression of the prodigy has changed. He approached their working relationship with modest expectations, having little insight on the person away from the TV broadcasts. The young woman who grew up before our eyes quickly won her new coach over with levels of professionalism, character, demeanor and kindness that succeeded any qualities Riba could have imagined.

“Now I understand why the people love Coco,” he declares. “It's not only because she's an amazing player. She's also an amazing, amazing person. I didn't know she was like that. I was expecting less.

“When you know more of her, you can see that is how she is—the education, the manners, how she treats the people, the way that she finishes the practice, stays outdoor for the fans. She is taking care of the things.

“I say many times to her, ‘Coco, you are too nice.’ She is unbelievable. Coco is 12 points from 10.”

Riba would love nothing more than to play a part in Gauff breaking through at her home major in New York. A year ago, the teenager took a step forward in reaching the US Open quarterfinals for the first time. In her Flushing Meadows return, Gauff so far has rallied for a three-set win over Laura Siegemund—in a match where she stood up for herself to chair umpire Marijana Veljovic after having enough of the German’s delay tactics being brushed off—and outclassed 16-year-old Mirra Andreeva in a far more comprehensive second-rounder.

If the No. 6 seed reaches the final eight again, a rematch with top-ranked Iga Swiatek is a likely scenario. The calming presence of Riba is here to reiterate that her end result isn’t the number one priority in Queens. It’s Coco Gauff staying true to Coco Gauff.

“I really wish that she win [the] US Open. But it is not mandatory,” he says. “She's going to try, she's going to fight, she's going to give the 100 percent, but step by step, hitting the ground and working every day, is what we are doing.

“Every day, she is ready for the job. We have confidence [in] each other. The communication is so easy between us. I'm so happy to work with her because she's listening. I only can give to you amazing words about who Coco is.”