Coco Gauff overpowers Ons Jabeur to set Iga Swiatek clash at WTA Finals
Oct 31, 2023
Mexico City [Mexico], October 31 : The World No. 3 Coco Gauff kicked off her WTA Finals Cancun campaign with a win over No.6 seed Ons Jabeur 6-0, 6-1.
Gauff's victory is her first at the season-ending finals, after going 0-6 in singles and doubles in Fort Worth last year. It's also her sixth Top 10 finish of the season. Only her next opponent, Iga Swiatek, has more points.
In Cancun, Gauff is playing her first tournament since splitting with coach Pere Riba after the China Open.
"Unfortunately, it wasn't my decision. But we had to end the partnership. If it was up to me, I would have loved to have him here. But you know, things happen. Life happens. So no bad terms on our end," Gauff said.
"Sometimes people think it's bigger than what it is. But some things just didn't work out and that's all. I still think that he was a great guy. And obviously, he did amazing things for me personally and also for my game. So I'm sure he's going to be successful in his next step," she added.
Gauff took a 3-0 lead in her first match against Jabeur this season in just seven minutes. The US Open champion refused to let Jabeur weave her cunning web with pinpoint hitting into the corners. Gauff faced no break points and only dropped three games on her serve in the 23-minute first set. Gauff only dropped nine points in the first set.
"Ons is a great player, so I felt really unsteady the whole match even though it didn't [look] like that. But I'm just happy to finally get a win here in this event," Gauff said.
The players exited the court for a rain delay after Gauff held serve in the first game of the second set to win her eighth successive game. Jabeur held serve on the resumption to get on the board.
Gauff overcame a 40-15 deficit to take a 3-1 lead over Jabeur. Gauff held her lead for 57 minutes as she continued to attack Jabeur's forehand return, improving her head-to-head versus the Tunisian to 4-2.
"She played really well. She played a correct match, and didn't make a lot of mistakes. On my part, I did make a lot of mistakes," Jabeur said after the match.
Gauff will face No.2 Swiatek next in what will be the 10th career meeting between the two young champions.
