Coco Gauff Oozing With “A Lot of Confidence” After Beating Mirra Andreeva to Reach the Semifinals of the Italian Open
Coco Gauff defeated Mirra Andreeva 6-4, 7-6(5) to reach the semi-finals of the Italian Open for the second consecutive time.
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Coco Gauff and Mirra Andreeva (via X)
Coco Gauff continued her impressive form against players younger than her as she defeated Mirra Andreeva for the second time in less than three weeks at the Italian Open. The American, who reached the final of the Madrid Open, ensured that she earned a place in the semi-finals of the WTA 1000 tournament in Rome, in style.
Gauff had struggled earlier this season, but since the clay-court swing, she has found her rhythm. She got to her first final of the year at the Madrid Open but failed to win the title after losing to Aryna Sabalenka in straight sets. Despite the loss, she has remained resilient in Rome, winning four straight matches.
She ended Emma Raducanu’s good run at the Italian Open with a straight set win. On Wednesday (May 14), she faced Andreeva for the second time time consecutive tournament in the quarter-finals. The former US Open champion was up and running in the first set, which forced the Russian teenager to hit two errant backhands that helped Gauff claim a 6-4 win.
In the second set, Andreeva improved the level of her display and tempo of the match as she came firing with more power than in the first. But Gauff kept defusing the power by pushing Andreeva to her baseline. Nonetheless, Andreeva didn’t give up early as she pushed for a tiebreak.
Gauff showed resilience, defeating Andreeva 6-4, 7-6(5) in the quarter-finals of the Italian Open. It was her 11th victory over players younger than her. She revealed during her post-match interview that she now has a lot of confidence going into the semi-finals of the tournament.
At the end my defense, it was tough. We were both kind of tight at the end of that tiebreaker. I’m feeling really good — and I feel I have a lot to improve on, too. When you’re winning matches and you still feel like you have a whole ceiling to reach, it just makes you feel good. A lot of confidence heading in [to the semifinals]. Today some points weren’t my best, but I still managed to be successful.
Coco Gauff said
Gauff will face the winner Qinwen Zheng in the semi-finals. She would have probably looked forward to playing against Sabalenka, who had defeated her in the final of the Madrid Open, as she would have attempted to seek revenge. Also, she will be aiming to reach the final of the Italian Open for the first time in her career.
Coco Gauff says her head-to-head record over Mirra Andreeva does not matter
Coco Gauff is the only player to have beaten Mirra Andreeva two consecutive times since February. The Russian teenager rose to fame in February after beating three Grand Slam champions to win the Dubai Tennis Championships and then defeating the World No.1 and No.2 to win Indian Wells.
However, since then she has not reached the semifinals of any tournament. Gauff defeated her in the quarter-finals in Madrid, and now at the same stage in Rome. She now has a commanding 4-0 lead over the Russian in their head-to-head record. However, she revealed after the match that the record doesn’t matter.
I don’t think about the H2H so much because when you’re playing someone younger, you know they can improve so much in a little bit of time. I think about my game compared to when I was her age and it’s a lot different, so, yes, it’s good, but also at the same time when I go on court, I treat each match like a new match and expect her to be better than the last time we played.
Coco Gauff said
Gauff is in her second back-to-back clay semi-finals. She will also become the new World No.2 in the WTA rankings following Iga Swiatek’s slump at the Italian Open.
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