Serena Williams Defends Coco Gauff's Outburst, Offers Racket Smashing Advice

Coco Gauff's racket-smashing tantrum at the Australian Open drew some backlash ... but not from Serena Williams, who came to the tennis star's defense -- and even offered some tips!!

Williams' husband, Alexis Ohanian, started it off ... going on X to write a message after Gauff took out her frustrations out on her equipment after losing to Ukraine's Elina Svitolina on Tuesday.

FYI, Gauff did not explode in front of the crowd -- she beat up the racket in the Rod Laver Stadium tunnel, but the cameras still caught the act.

"NGL I love this energy and emotion from @CocoGauff," Ohanian said, "We love sports because it's raw, because these athletes put their ALL into the battle and sometimes (like life) you don't win. Media are gonna spin this private moment for a headline to get some clicks, but Coco did nothing wrong here."

Williams agreed ... and piggybacked off Ohanian's take.

"Well said @alexisohanian," Williams replied. "Passion. Caring. Matters. Nothing wrong with hating to lose."

"Now, Coco, when you want I can show you how to demolish in one swipe ... Serena style."

Williams could teach a class on the topic -- she had more than a few racket-smashing moments during her legendary career, including the time at the Wimbledon championship in 2019, which resulted in a fine.

Even with the outbursts and all, Williams is still considered one of the best tennis players -- and one of the greatest female athletes -- of all time.

Williams did pretty well for herself -- she earned 23 Grand Slam singles titles and was ranked No. 1 for 186 consecutive weeks.