Coco Gauff and Ajla Tomljanović delivered one of the most gripping battles of the 2025 US Open, pushing each other to the edge in a three-set thriller. Gauff took the opener 6-4, stumbled in a tense second-set tiebreak, and then clawed her way back to seal the decider 7-5. But while the Arthur Ashe crowd kept cheering for the athletes, they couldn’t help sending some heat towards the commentators. 

The criticism stemmed from what many viewers called biased and dismissive commentary, particularly from Chris Evert and Chris Fowler. During key exchanges, fans felt the duo failed to give Ajla Tomljanović her due. One flashpoint came when Tomljanović sent a sharp ball to Gauff’s side, only for the American to chase it down and flip the rally. Fowler immediately remarked, “She hit the shot and didn’t cover it! Doesn’t she know how fast Gauff is?” A few rallies later, when Tomljanović narrowly missed the lines, Evert brushed it off as “ridiculous.” Later, as Gauff regained momentum at 5-4 in the decider, Evert praised her “extra pace in the last few shots,” further fueling claims of favoritism.

For fans, these weren’t just isolated slips. Many saw a pattern, with this being yet another chapter in Evert’s strained relationship with viewers. At the 2025 French Open final between Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka, fans especially flagged her repetitive talking without restraint, one wrote, “This match deserves impartial commentary… it’s really noticeable, especially with Chris Evert and co.”

She’s also been accused of painting an almost devotional image of Gauff. During the French Open quarter-final versus Madison Keys, Evert called Gauff “a fighter…she’s as good as anybody,” and “the greatest young woman ever.”  This week at the US Open, those frustrations boiled over. 

US Open Tennis shared the tiebreak highlights on X with the caption, “She and Coco Gauff are headed to a decider!” When Gauff’s return hit the net, Evert and Fowler’s reactions only added fuel to the fire. Soon after the post went live, fans swarmed the comments section, ripping into the commentary booth for what they called subpar and biased coverage. This is what they had to say:

Fans aren’t happy with the commentary for Coco Gauff vs. Ajla Tomljanović

One of the fans acknowledged ESPN covering the 2025 US Open. But the excitement subsided with Evert’s commentary. The comment read, “I love that ESPN is covering the U.S. Open, but Chrissy Everett is the worst ever. Please remove her from the telecast.” Another fan added to the sentiment and wrote, “Chris evert is dumb. Almost makes this unwatchable.” One more fan claimed, “The announcers on here are sooo ridiculous!”

The fans had the same thought while reacting to one of Rennae Stubbs’ X posts. Serena Williams’ ex-coach praised the Croatian. But one fan reacted to that, quoting, “I wish you would replace Chris Evert as commentator. Painful to listen to her bias, dismissing Ajla, who playing her a– off!” Another fan commented on that, claiming, “Some of these commentators are so biased. Ever so often they just write off opponents, and by now we all know the game is played on the court and anything can happen.” 

Additionally, one more fan highlighted the big win for Gauff. But the commentary by Chris Evert and Chris Fowler turned it all sour. The X post read, “Phenomenal match and gritty win for @CocoGauff. Would have been even more fun to watch if Chris Evert and Chris Fowler didn’t talk over the entire match, often about unrelated topics.” The fans seemed to have made up their minds against the commentary booth. But if you want more on-court drama, head to our EssentiallySports Live Blog now.