Teen Coco Gauff reveals attitude change that took her to Linz title

Coco Gauff credits turning around her attitude with turning around her week in Linz, getting the 15-year-old her first WTA title.

Gauff is now inside the Top 100 at No. 71 in the rankings, and says she's exceeded her expectations with a breakthrough that began by reaching the second week of Wimbledon.

"At the beginning of this year, I never thought that around this time, I'd be winning my first title. I've accomplished all my goals this year that I wanted to do," she told the WTA.

Gauff initially fell in the final round of qualifying for Linz and only got in when another player withdrew. But she and her coaches used the defeat to adjust, noting that she had been rushing and going for too much.

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"I was relieved, and I played more free," she said. "My body language could've been better, and my attitude on the court.

"I took that into account and I used what I learned in the next matches. My goal wasn't really to win [upon getting back into the tournament]—my goal was to improve my behavior and attitude.

"I gained more and more confidence in my strokes. I played some tough opponents, so my confidence is doing well, and is high right now."

She got her first Top 10 win at Linz against Kiki Bertens, and defeated Jelena Ostapenko in the final.

Gauff is also playing this week's WTA event at Luxembourg, with another withdrawal getting her straight into the draw.

The teen is required to play a limited schedule because of WTA age restrictions.