MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Coco Gauff extended his unbeaten start until 2025 to seven matches and 14 sets by reaching the third round in Australian Open with a 6-3, 7-5 victory over 173rd-ranked Jodie Burrage of Great Britain at Rod Laver Arena on Wednesday.
American Coco Gauff plays a backhand against Britain’s Jodie Burrage during their second round match at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne, Australia, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Gauff, the 2023 US Open Champion and semi-finalist at Melbourne Park a year ago, went through a bit of a rough patch in the second set, battling double faults and losing four games in a row to go from a break at 3-1 to a break at 5-3.
But when Burrage served for the second set, Gauff regained control, using a four-game set of his own to end the match.
“It was hard. She was serving really well, so I was just trying to deal with it, honestly,” the Gauff, seeded No. 3 said. “She really stepped it up in the middle of the second set, so I was just trying to be offensive when I could.”
Gauff committed six of his seven double faults in the second set, but was much steadier at the baseline, finishing the hour-and-a-half match with 11 unforced errors on the groundstroke, compared to Burrage’s 37 .
Britain’s Jodie Burrage reacts during her second round match against American Coco Gauff at the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne, Australia, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian)
Each of Burrage’s last two service games ended in a double fault; there were two in a row which made the score 6-5.
From there, Gauff finished the job as she continues to try to improve her serve and forehand, two shots she has focused on since the end of last season.
“She was coming back well, so that put pressure on my serve,” Gauff said. “If I got something short, she would get a winner.”
Add in four straight wins en route to the title at the WTA Finals in November – including straight-set wins over No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka and No. 2 Iga Swiatek – and Gauff’s winning streak now stands at 11 matches.
Part of that streak also included a victory in the United Cup team competition against the 20-year-old American’s next opponent: No. 30. Leylah Fernándezwho was Emma Raducanu’s runner-up at the 2021 US Open.
Fernandez came back to defeat Cristina Bucsa 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 on Wednesday.
AP Tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
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