Coco Gauff drew a direct line between her own early rise and Alysa Liu’s return to the top after the Milano-Cortina Olympics. The two-time Grand Slam champion, speaking ahead of the BNP Paribas Open, said she could “highly relate” to Liu’s path from a young, high-pressure start to an adult reclaiming her career.

Liu, who topped the podium last month at Milano-Cortina, left a lasting impression with a story that began as a teenage prodigy. She set several youngest-ever marks with back-to-back national championships at ages 13 and 14 before stepping away from the sport and later returning to win Olympic gold. Gauff noted the parallels to her own experience of early success: she made her WTA tour-level debut at age 14 and became a global superstar by 15.

“I think her whole story was super inspiring,” Gauff said, acknowledging that their experiences are not identical but are closely aligned. “I wouldn’t say I have faced burnout, but there are times you’re mentally just tired of it and you feel like you’re doing stuff and you don’t know why,” she added. “So I definitely could relate to her whole story. I was happy to see her be that voice saying the unsaid things that athletes think but are maybe scared to say.”

Beyond Liu, Gauff praised other moments and personalities from recent international competition. She complimented freestyle skier Eileen Gu on her public speaking and referenced the excitement of the U.S. men’s and women’s hockey teams’ gold-medal performances. “Eileen Gu is someone I follow on Instagram and we’ve interacted. I’ve never met her, but she speaks so well,” Gauff said. “Obviously she’s super smart. I think she’s one of those people you don’t want your parents to find out about because she’s so accomplished, and they’re, like, ‘What are you doing?’ I could be Grand Slam winner. And my mom is, like, ‘She graduated Stanford and did all this stuff.’”

Reflecting on other storylines, she said, “It was unfortunate to see everything that went on with Lindsey [Vonn], but I think still for her to take that leap of faith was still inspiring.” Gauff also admitted she had recently watched hockey for the first time and enjoyed it: “There were a few stories that I followed. And obviously the hockey, women’s and men’s hockey was really cool to watch. I had never watched hockey before, but I was watching and I was excited. Maybe I’ll get into it.”

The 22nd Desert Smash brought celebrities, current players and pickleball athletes together at the La Quinta Resort and Club for a two-day charity exhibition ahead of the BNP Paribas Open. Golden Globe nominee and Emily in Paris Lily Collins attended the event, appearing as Emily Cooper alongside husband Charlie McDowell, his mother Mary Steenburgen and stepfather Ted Danson.

The event blended tennis and pickleball play featuring athletes from both sports and Hollywood figures. Participating tennis professionals included Alex de Minaur, Lorenzo Musetti, Elena Rybakina, Jasmine Paolini, Victoria Mboko, Naomi Osaka, Alexander Zverev and Nick Kyrgios, the last of whom traded his racquet for a paddle.

Funds raised at the Desert Smash were designated for the USTA Foundation. The USTA Foundation is described as the independent social impact arm of the USTA that uses tennis, education and mentorship opportunities to transform the lives of young people from under-resourced communities nationwide. Last year, more than 230,000 youth participated in USTA Foundation-supported organizations, and two of them had the unforgettable opportunity to play tennis with Bob and Mike Bryan during the event as well.

On the role athletes can play in giving back, Kyrgios said, “Anytime I can give back, I think that’s the most powerful thing athletes can do,” Kyrgios said . “Obviously, I put my hand up as much as I can to help.”

The USTA Foundation emphasized the visibility the Desert Smash creates for its work. “Desert Smash brings unmatched visibility, giving us a powerful platform to share our story and create lasting impact,” said USTA Foundation CEO Ginny Ehrlich in a news release last month that announced the USTA’s social impact arm as the 2026 beneficiary . “This partnership is about providing young people from under-resourced communities the tools they need to write their best life stories–on and off the court.”

Craig Tiley arrives at the USTA with a clear mandate: expand participation and refine the US Open experience. The 64-year-old South African broke his responsibilities into what he calls three pillars, and when asked about the Open he distilled fan improvements into four simple priorities. “My mind works very simply,” Tiley said on Wednesday at Indian Wells. “I need a lot of clarity on things.”

On the fan side his answer is concise. “Screens, seats, shade, and space. If you cover those four, the fans are very happy.” He has a long record of making stadium changes and operational decisions aimed at larger, happier crowds. At Tennis Australia he rose through player development, added the Australian Open tournament-director role and became CEO in 2013. His initiatives there included a roof on Margaret Court Arena, electronic line calling, and significant prize-money increases from $20 million in 2007 to $115 million this year. Attendance at the Australian Open climbed from 700,000 in 2016 to 1.4 million.

Tiley combines promotion and tennis experience. He coached the University of Illinois men’s team to a 32-0 record and the NCAA title in 2003, and under his leadership Tennis Australia was an early adopter of UTR, an investor in Laver Cup and a creator of the 1-Point Slam. Not every move has been without controversy; in 2022 his handling of a player’s entry into Australia amid Covid rules ended with the player deported and Tiley criticized.

Beyond the Open, his USTA brief is numeric: reach 35 million Americans playing tennis by 2035. Current participation sits at 27 million and rising. Since the pandemic tennis participation grew by 30 percent in Australia and 54 percent in the U.S. “It’s a big ask,” Tiley says, “but there’s a way forward, everyone working together, keeping the politics out of it.” He closes on the mission: “We have to remember, the reason why we do the US Open is to promote and grow the sport.”