Coco Gauff’s schoolgirl-inspired Miu Miu ensemble for the official WTA Finals portraits drew plenty of praise, but none resonated more than a heartfelt reaction from her father, Corey. Fashion commentary dominated the final two days leading into the year-ending championship, but Corey’s reaction carried more weight than the rest.
Corey is a familiar face in his daughter’s comment sections, usually to defend her tennis rather than appraise her clothes. When criticism of her double-fault count peaked after the 2025 season, he answered it in the comments with a point-by-point rebuttal. This time the message was just a father admiring a photograph.
Thanks for the submission!
Corey Gauff wrote: “So beautiful my precious daughter.” Gauff replied, “thanks dad.”
Gauff’s outfit, a uniform-inspired Miu Miu look that drew “school girl” comparisons, was a clear break from the kit she wears for work. Miu Miu is a house she represents as an ambassador and through a New Balance collaboration that produced an all-white on-court collection this year.
Alongside the 22-year-old, Mirra Andreeva and Jessica Pegula wore Chanel, while Elena Rybakina donned Dior, as this year’s editorial concept styled the elite field as high-fashion spectators in Fall/Winter 2026 and Resort 2027 collections.
Coco Gauff on father’s role in fulfilling her tennis dream
While Corey’s comment was brief, it served as a poignant reminder of the sacrifices that have shaped nearly every chapter of Coco Gauff’s career. The World No. 4 has been vocal about the role her parents, especially her father, played in the early stages of her career.
“My dad told me I could do it when I was eight years old,” Gauff has said. “Obviously, you’re never 100% sure, but my parents believed in me from the start. That belief meant everything when I was growing up.”
Corey played basketball at Georgia State University and worked as a healthcare executive before stepping away to coach his daughter. Their family moved from Atlanta back to Delray Beach, Florida, when Coco Gauff was seven to find better training to shape her career. He was her primary coach through her first years on tour.
“We put a racquet in her hand so she could be the best version of herself she could be,” Corey told Tennis Channel’s “Second Serve” after her 2025 French Open title. “If that’s winning lots of Grand Slams, then so be it.”
Witnessing his daughter in action has often proved even more nerve-wracking than coaching her. Corey usually avoids the player box because his nerves can travel to her, and he followed the 2025 Roland Garros final on an iPad from the transportation area.
On the tennis front, Coco Gauff arrives in Indian Wells as the No. 4 seed, in Group 1 with Rybakina, Pegula and Linda Noskova, and opens against Pegula on Sunday. She won this title in 2024 in Riyadh, but this time Rybakina is the defending champion.
Gauff has won both 2026 meetings with Pegula, at Wimbledon and in the Cincinnati final, while the World No. 5 beat her at the same stage of last year’s Finals.
Edited by Shyam Kamal
