After the American’s venting went viral, players’ privacy has become a serious issue and deserves to be respected regardless of their income
The court access corridor at Melbourne Park is buried inconspicuously underneath the tournament grounds. A long, spacious walkway, it connects the east and west points of the vast Australian Open venue, allowing competitors to move unaccosted between the courts, player areas and media facilities. Right in the middle of the corridor, a large pair of automatic doors open up to the various private player areas.
Those same doors also lead straight to the entrance of Rod Laver Arena. On Tuesday, in the immediate aftermath of her excruciating 6-1, 6-2 loss to Elina Svitolina, Coco Gauff removed a racket from her bag, exited the double doors into the vacant corridor and up a ramp that she believed was hidden by a wall. She then proceeded to obliterate her racket on the concrete floor. Two days later, the force of that racket smash continues to reverberate around the tour.
Gauff’s release of frustration was actually an act of self-control. Although she desperately needed to vent after such a poor performance, the American waited until she left the court and deliberately chose to shatter her racket in the corridor precisely because she thought no one but a few tournament staff members walking past would witness her frustration. She did not grasp just how widespread cameras are around the grounds. Within minutes broadcasters had picked up the footage and spread it ceaselessly across the internet.
