Coco Vandeweghe’s new coach, Jan-Michael Gambill, says he’s comfortable working with her mother Tauna, who is known to be a very involved parent. Gambill, a former Top 15 player, was coached by his father, Chuck. A former Olympic athlete in volleyball and swimming, Tauna does not coach her daughter, but is at most of her matches.
CoCo’s father, Robert Mullarkey, who is divorced from her mother and lives in New York, was at his daughter’s straight-sets win over Alberta Brianti on Tuesday, the first time the 19-year-old has won a main-draw match at a major. CoCo has not spoken to her father in three years and said she didn’t even know he was there.
Gambill said he gets along very well with Tauna. "Tauna is not any tougher than my dad,” Gambill told TENNIS.com. "If I can handle my dad, I can handle Tauna. She’s intense, but I’m not going to try and change the situation because if I did, it would just cause more strife. I’m trying to get CoCo solid on court, getting her fitness to the best place it can be and getting her mindset to the best place it can be. Tauna wants the best for daughter and is a fantastic person. She’s vocal, but also is an experienced athlete. I’m not afraid to voice my opinion and we’ve already had a number of conversations and I’m not always going to be right, either."
Vandeweghe will face ninth seed Sam Stosur on Wednesday.