"Coco Gauff has found a way to tame her emotions" - Martina Navratilova heaps praise on American, compares her with Carlos Alcaraz

Martina Navratilova has praised Coco Gauff for developing a growth mindset that contributed to her recent success.

Navratilova, who won a combined 59 Major titles in singles, doubles and mixed doubles, recently wrote an exclusive column for the WTA. The 67-year-old found the reigning US Open champion Gauff's career trajectory to be deserving of high praise.

The American claimed that Coco Gauff was "too fired up" during her early years on the WTA Tour, so much so that it might've led to burnout. However, she asserted that the teen was more emotionally stable since last year.

"She [Coco Gauff] has found a way to tame her emotions. The first couple years on tour, I thought she was too fired up," Navratilova said in her Australian Open preview for the WTA players. "I thought she was going to burn out. She’s still a teenager, I know, but she needed to just dial it down."

Navratilova then drew a comparison between her calm demeanor and Carlos Alcaraz's on-court restlessness.

"Like Carlos Alcaraz, going all out on every point, every match," she added. "You just can’t sustain that, when every point is a match point."

Navratilova also spared a word for the World No. 3's coach, Brad Gilbert, who had joined her team in August last year.

"I think Brad Gilbert has really helped her with the forehand — don’t stress about it. And find a different way to win. He had to play that way himself," she said. "You can only play your best once in a while. You’re just trying to get as close to that as possible."

Coco Gauff has received a tough draw in Melbourne, could rise to new career-high ranking if she delivers

Meanwhile, Coco Gauff has a lot to gain from her campaign at the 2024 Australian Open. The 19-year-old will play her opener against Slovakia's Anna Karolina Schmiedlova on Monday (January 13).

Gauff will most likely reach the second week with little to no trouble, even though a potential third-round encounter with 32nd-seeded Leylah Fernandez could be tricky. If she can navigate past the Canadian's challenge, she will face the winner between Caroline Garcia and Anastasia Potapova for a place in the quarterfinals.

The going gets tougher from there as World No. 1 Iga Swiatek, defending champion Aryna Sabalenka and eighth seed Maria Sakkari are her projected opponents in the final, semifinals and quarterfinals, respectively. However, considering how high the stakes are, Gauff will have plenty of motivation to do well in Melbourne.

The World No. 3 is not only chasing a second-career Major title in Melbourne, but also a new career-high ranking of World No. 2. She will leapfrog Sabalenka in the WTA rankings if she makes it to the semifinals and the Belarusian doesn't go past the last eight.