Coco Gauff continues to impress on clay as she books her spot in the French Open third round.
The American WTA star is yet to drop a set in the French capital, easing through her opening two matches.
In round one, Gauff beat Olivia Gadecki, 6-2, 6-2, dismantling the Australian star on Court Philippe Chatrier.
Producing a similarly impressive performance in her second-round match, Gauff defeated Tereza Valentova, 6-2, 6-4.
Gauff and Valentova were made to wait for their match, however, as Arthur Fils and Jaume Munar battled it out in a five-set thriller on Suzanne-Lenglen in the first tie of the day.
The 21-year-old now reveals what she did while waiting for her match to get underway.
Coco Gauff says she ‘took a nap’ before her second-round win at the French Open
During her on-court interview, Gauff was asked how she dealt with the delay before her second-round win over Valentova.
“It was weird because Arthur [Fils] won the first two sets but they were so long,” she said.
“But I took a nap and was honestly just on TikTok the whole time and watching the match, obviously was rooting for Arthur.
“I was just like, come on man, finish it, it ended up being five sets, but it’s ok, we both got the win today, so that’s all that matters.”
The world number two then assessed her performance, highlighting the area of her game where she wasn’t ‘aggressive’ enough.
“Yeah I think overall it was fine, a little bit towards the end of the second I could’ve been more aggressive with the serve, but the return game I felt was really good,” said Gauff.
“She’s obviously a great player, great young player, so I knew it was going to be a tough match today.”
Gauff’s serve was far from perfect against the Czech teenager, something she’ll no doubt look to work on during her day off.
| Player | Aces | Double faults | 1st Serve % | Win % on first serve | Win % on second serve |
| Coco Gauff | 2 | 6 | 70% | 61% | 30% |
| Tereza Valentova | 2 | 3 | 68% | 44% | 20% |
When asked what she plans to do on her day off, Gauff made it clear that practice was her priority.
“Definitely practice, just to work on some things that I thought I could do better today, I don’t know, hang out in the city, sleep in, eat some food, just the usual,” she said.
Coco Gauff set for Marie Bouzkova challenge in Roland Garros third round
Next up for Gauff is another Czech star, Marie Bouzkova, who won her first two matches in Paris without dropping a set.
- 2025 French Open 1R – Marie Bouzkova beat Anna Kalinskaya, 6-4, 7-5
- 2025 French Open 2R – Marie Bouzkova beat Sonay Kartal, 6-1, 6-4
The 26-year-old has played Gauff twice before on the WTA Tour, emerging victorious on both occasions.
Gauff and Bouzkova met for the first time at the Cincinnati Open in 2022, an event the Czech entered as a qualifier.
After dropping the first set 5-7, Gauff retired due to injury one game into the second, as Bouzkova made her way through to the next round.
Their rivalry resumed at the Italian Open one year later, where Gauff won her first set against the Czech star.
Bouzkova was determined to extend her head-to-head lead, however, and fought back to win in three sets, 4-6, 6-2, 6-2.
She’ll no doubt be confident of securing a third win over Gauff, despite their significant disparity in career achievements.
Coco Gauff career achievements
- Career-high ranking – 2nd
- Current ranking – 2nd
- WTA Titles – 9
- Best French Open performance – F (2022)
- Head-to-head record with Marie Bouzkova – 0-2
Marie Bouzkova career achievements
- Career-high ranking – 24th
- Current ranking – 47th
- WTA Titles – 1
- Best French Open performance – 3R (2024, 2025)
- Head-to-head record with Coco Gauff – 2-0
Only time will tell who will come out on top when Gauff and Bouzkova face off for a place in the fourth round on Saturday, May 31.
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