In a move that has left the “Hollanov” community in a whirlwind, tennis sensation Coco Gauff has announced herself as the number one fan of HBO’s new queer hockey drama series, Heated Rivalry.
At a pre-tennis tournament press conference held prior to the 2026 Australian Open, the No. 3 seed and two-time Grand Slam champion made a surprising and dramatic detour from tennis talk to extend a personal invitation to the stars of the show, Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams, to come and watch her in action in Melbourne.
“Hey, Connor and Hudson, my name is Coco,” Gauff said, addressing the camera directly. “I am tennis’ number one Heated Rivalry fan. Please come to my match and watch me play… love you guys.”
The pop culture phenomenon in Melbourne
As Gauff has explained, she came across the series trending on the internet and “dived right in.” What drew Gauff to the series the most was the enemies-to-lovers trope and the development of the relationship. According to Gauff, the ten-year-long love relationship between Rozanov and Hollander, played by Williams and Storrie, seemed to be more than a television provocation. It seemed to be a real love story.
But at the same time, she was quite frank about the sensual side of this series and mentioned “spicy scenes” and “tension” as being part of what makes it such a hit. The best thing about this series for Gauff is that it combines both the titillating side and romantic pleasure. This is contagious enough that she has been encouraging other women in her locker room at WTA events to watch it.
This shoutout by Gauff is in a context where Heated Rivalry has fully integrated itself into mainstream pop culture. Storrie and Williams had just broken the internet a few days prior to this for their chaotic and raw performance as hosts of the 2026 Golden Globes. At the same time, seeing the key cast and personnel of Heated Rivalry at elite sports events such as the NFL playoffs or NHL could be seen as a sign of its legitimacy in pop culture. As far as tennis is concerned, Gauff has had a very strong start to her Australian Open series.
The young star kicked off her series with a very convincing win over Kamilla Rakhimova and has now progressed to the second round with her sights firmly set on claiming her third Grand Slam victory. Although the Australian Open is still ongoing until February 1, there has already been speculation about whether Storrie and Williams will accept Gauff’s offer to come to Melbourne for the Australian Open. Considering the current rise in popularity for Heated Rivalry and taking into consideration that Season 2 has already been confirmed to be “hotter, wetter, and longer,” a “Hollanov” appearance at the Australian Open is certainly not impossible at this stage.
