Coco Gauff booked her place in the round of 16 at the China Open after coming through her clash with Leylah Fernandez.
The American was forced to a third set against the Canadian, and almost let the match slip away from her in the decider, but ultimately sealed the victory to continue her title defence, winning 6-4, 4-6, 7-5.
Though Gauff called the China Open a ‘practice tournament’, she showed plenty of fight in her bout with Fernandez, digging deep to best the former US Open finalist for the third time in her career.
It was not the tidiest of performances from the world number three, who says there was one shot in her game that could have been much better.
Coco Gauff reacts to her victory over Leylah Fernandez in Beijing
In her on-court interview, Gauff said: “It was very physical, we were going back and forth.
“Obviously, the third set I was applying pretty well, and then I think I could have served a little bit better, but I did what I needed to do to win today.”
Reacting to the match on Sky Sports, former Ukrainian player Olga Savchuk said: “Absolutely incredible match from both, we’ve seen so many twists and turns in this match and especially in the third set.
“Overall, 15 breaks of serve, which is just incredible. I mean, Leylah Fernandez, what a game she produced today.
“She was so close to the finish line, came back twice, three times to try and win this set. It will be tough to swallow, I have to say for her.”
Coco Gauff could win a third WTA 1000 title at the China Open
Gauff is now four wins away from claiming the third WTA 1000 title of her career, and her first successful title defence at the level.
She won her first such crown at the Cincinnati Open in 2023, beating Karolina Muchova in the final to hoist the trophy, before going on to win the US Open later that summer.
In 2024, she clinched her second WTA 1000 championship, emerging victorious in Beijing, beating Muchova in the title bout once again.
This season, she has made two finals, both of which came during the clay swing, suffering near misses in Madrid and Rome.
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