Coco Gauff gets past gritty rival to earn third-round berth at US Open

Coco Gauff had lost her last two matches against Paula Badosa before their meeting inside Arthur Ashe Stadium Thursday night in the second round of the U.S.Open, most recently on grass in June at the Berlin Tennis Open. And despite having lost five of their eight matches, the 22-year-old American was still the overwhelming favorite. Narrowly evading a deciding third set, Gauff ultimately prevailed in a tight 6-4, 7-6(5) win — her eighth straight victory to make it 16 sets in a row — to advance to the third round in Flushing for a fifth straight year. Throwing both her fists up in the air, Gauff let out an emphatic scream to celebrate. She will face Spain’s Cristina Bucșa on Saturday. “I think it’s good to be battle-tested,” Gauff said.

“When I won here in 2023, I think I went three sets what felt like every match.… I think, for me, it’s a good confidence booster knowing that I can get through these matches.

Obviously, I would prefer maybe not to play someone who I’ve lost to so many times in the second round, but I think today was a big confidence booster, and I think getting through in straight sets, too, makes a big difference.” Serving for the match twice before prevailing in the second-set tiebreak, Gauff admitted Badosa was not someone she wanted to see so early in her draw.The 28-year-old Badosa has also been ranked as high as world No.

2, which Gauff pointed out during her on-court interview. Badosa was playing for a third consecutive day after she was forced to finish her first-round match Wednesday due to rain earlier this week, but she still pushed Gauff like usual. Gauff also said she had some nerves during the match. That much was evident early on in the first set, as the world No.4 struggled to hold serve through the first few games.

She had to come back from down 40-15 in her first service game to keep pace with Barbosa. By the sixth game, however, Gauff was putting the ball right where she wanted it. Both players ...