Coco Gauff's Dad Applauds Her for 'Fighting for Fairness' After She Gets in Argument with Umpire
Coco ultimately defeated Karolína Plíšková and will advance to the quarterfinals in Dubai
An argument between Coco Gauff and an umpire went viral on social media on Wednesday
Coco's dad, Corey Gauff, praised his daughter for how she handled the disagreement
Coco ultimately defeated Karolína Plíšková and will advance to the quarterfinals in Dubai
Coco Gauff's dad is proud of how his daughter handled herself on the court.
Gauff, 19, found herself in a disagreement with an umpire during the Dubai Tennis Championships on Wednesday over a disputed point.
Ultimately, Gauff defeated Karolína Plíšková in the match, after roughly five minutes of game break in which the umpire refused to credit Gauff with the point, instead saying the point should be replayed. The American tennis star asked to speak with the match supervisor, but the umpire refused.
The argument went viral on social media, with a majority of fans and analysts agreeing with Coco.
Tennis great Andy Roddick wrote, “This is an absurd exchange for this umpire," on X, formerly Twitter, and explained, "1. He’s completely wrong 2. He’s lying about being wrong. 3. She must have simply said 10 plus times, I’d like the supervisor."
Roddick added, "That’s not a judgement call. He simply needed to honor that normal request and call the supervisor."
Related: All About Coco Gauff’s Parents, Candi and Corey Gauff
Corey Gauff, Coco's father, took to Instagram to share his thoughts on the debate and praise for how his daughter handled the frustrating situation.
Corey began, “So proud of my daughter. Standing up for yourself and fighting for fairness. You have the strength of your grandmothers who are 2 of the strongest women we know."
"While being passionate you remained respectful as you articulated your argument. The scene is so familiar to women and women of color pleading and fighting to be treated fairly and respectfully by their male counterparts," he continued.
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Corey added that his daughter is "an incredible example to women" and to her "generation" on "what it means to fight."
"Despite not getting the outcome you wanted you wanted you stood up for yourself and successfully moved on. You are becoming the young woman I prayed for. God Bless you," Corey wrote.
Coco's mom, Candi Gauff, commented, "Very proud," on Corey's post.
Coco appreciated her father's kind words and thanked him for "being the best father" in a comment on his post. Coco wrote, "Aw thank you dad I love you so much! thanks for being the best father. I would have never become the person i am without you."
Next, Coco will compete against Anna Kalinskaya in Dubai for the tournament's quarterfinals.
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