Coco Gauff explains the real reason why she lost to Iga Swiatek so heavily at the Italian Open

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Coco Gauff shares some insight into why was beaten by Iga Swiatek at the Italian Open.

The American battled the World Number One for a spot in the Rome final in what was the pair’s 11th meeting.

But despite her best efforts, the US Open champion lost to the Pole for the tenth time, all of which came in straight sets.

This halted what was an impressive campaign for Gauff and this bodes well for the upcoming Roland Garros Grand Slam event.

Coco Gauff outlines why she fell shirt against Iga Swiatek at Italian Open

Beating Swiatek anywhere but particularly on a clay court is arguably the toughest challenge in women’s tennis at present.

Gauff attempted to halt the 22-year-old’s 10-match winning run on the dirt and despite playing some solid tennis, the third seed succumbed to Swiatek’s consistent brilliance, which she alluded to in her post match press conference.

“I thought that I played well for the majority of the match. It came down to certain moments,” she told reporters. “She came up clutch. She had a lot of balls on the line, close to the line, which is what she does.

“It sucks to lose, but I know I lost playing the right way. I know that I’m a good player and that I can do better in those moments. I think I’m just trusting myself and my practice at that.

“I think the way that I lost today, it wasn’t because a wing or a shot broke down, it’s because she was the better player today. If I lose matches like that, we go back and we practice.”

What is Coco Gauff’s head-to-head record against Iga Swiatek?

As one of the WTA’s top players, Gauff has a winning head-to-head against the vast majority of her rivals.

But that is not the case against Swiatek, who has now won 10 of their 11 encounters. The only sets dropped by the World Number One were in their semi-final showdown at the Cincinnati Masters.

Gauff won this contest 7-6 3-6, 6-4 in August 2023 to claim her only career victory against Swiatek so far.

She had a chance to claim a second in Rome, but the top seed overcame an early break of serve and tight first set to secure a 6-4, 6-3 win in one hour and 48 minutes.

Gauff’s second serve proved to be an issue once again as a subpar 37% of points won behind her second serve enabled Swiatek to claim four breaks throughout the contest and move into her third Italian Open final.