Coco Gauff is one of the best players in the world, but many fans won't be aware that she doesn't compete under her birth name. She's among the favourites to take the title at the 2026 Australian Open, having enjoyed a stellar 2025 campaign.

Gauff picked up the second Grand Slam title of her career at the French Open, with the 21-year-old no doubt looking to build on that this year. It was a welcome return to the Slam-winning circle for the American, who won the US Open as a teenager back in 2023.

A lesser-known fact about the tennis star is that her real name is in fact Cori, which is used on the official documents she uses for signing up to tournaments. However, she's admitted that it can sometimes throw up complications, especially when trying to check into hotels and airports.

She said: "Every time I check into hotels or [with] people at the airport, they look at my ID. Obviously the airport you book under your real name, but the person sometimes will recognise me and they'll be like, 'Wait, are you Coco?' I'm like, 'Yeah, it's just a nickname. I'm not somebody that looks like her.' In the hotel, sometimes [they're] like, 'Well, we don't have your room.' I'm like, 'It's probably under Coco, not Cori.' And then they'll do that."

Whereas, when quizzed on the origin story behind the name 'Coco', she explained: "My dad's name is Corey. And so I guess, you know, they didn't want me to get my dad and me confused when my mum is like yelling at one of us in the house. With Coco there are two stories. My aunt says she came up with calling me Coco.

"But then my dad said, when he was younger people used to call me Co. Then he was like, 'I'll call my daughter Coco.' I don't know which story is actually true, but they both get pretty bad if I don't say both of them. I just say that."