RIYADH, NOV 6 – Coco Gauff recorded a rare victory over Iga Swiatek, thus qualifying for the semi-finals of the WTA Finals in Riyadh yesterday.
The defeat has wiped out Swiatek’s chance to be ranked number one in the world at the end of the year.
Swiatek, the defending champion, is competing with Aryna Sabalenka for the top spot this week, but needs a win over Gauff to keep her chances of overtaking the Belarusian rival alive.
Gauff, 20, enters the contest having lost 11 of his previous 12 meetings with Swiatek, with the American’s lone win coming in Cincinnati last year.
However, Gauff managed to turn the tide against Swiatek yesterday, beating the second seed 6-3, 6-4 to record two victories straight set of two games round-robin in Riyadh this week.
“It feels great. I knew before the match that despite our meet record, I was very confident going into the match,” said Gauff, who committed 11 double faults during the one-hour, 48-minute match.
Except during the opening game, Gauff had a chance break point in every Swiatek service game in the first set.
The third-seeded American, Gauff, hit his stride in the seventh game, breaking serve to lead 4-3, and finished the set with another break of serve, taking the lead in the 49th minute.
Swiatek needs six break point in a long third game in the second set to finally break Gauff’s serve but he failed to consolidate his advantage.
They exchange each other break point, with Gauff’s double-fault total increasing to double digits and Swiatek continuing to make a lot of mistakes. – AFP
