Coco Gauff's performance at the China Open exemplifies resilience and determination in the face of adversity. In her quarter-final match against Yuliia Starodubtseva, Gauff experienced a challenging start, losing the first set 2-6. However, she demonstrated remarkable mental fortitude by regrouping to secure victory in the subsequent sets with scores of 6-2 and 6-2 . This comeback not only highlights her competitive spirit but also underscores her ability to adapt under pressure.
Gauff will next play Paula Badosa of Spain, who earlier ended local wild card Zhang Shuai's unexpected run at the title.
The No. 115-ranked Starodubtseva had not lost a set in her three matches this week and quickly took the lead, making 10 winners and holding Gauff to zero in an error-strewn first set for the American.
Gauff, 20, will face 15th seed Paula Badosa in Saturday's semi-final for a spot in her first final since winning in Auckland in January.
Badosa reached the last four by defeating China's Zhang Shuai in straight sets.
The Spaniard saw off the wildcard 6-1 7-6 (7-4) in one hour 23 minutes, although she had to fight back from 1-3 down in the second set.
Badosa was ranked 140 in the world earlier this year, but has risen to 19th after 28 wins in 35 matches since May.
The remaining quarter-finals will take place on Friday with top seed Aryna Sabalenka facing Karolina Muchova, and Mirra Andreeva taking on fifth seed Qinwen Zheng.
The Spaniard has won 28 of her last 35 matches dating to May and made the semifinals of three of her past five tournaments. There was also a run to the U.S. Open quarterfinals last month.
But the story of the week has been the 35-year-old Zhang, who entered the China Open on a 24-match losing streak — the second longest in the Open era — and ranked No. 595. She didn’t drop a set in four previous matches this week.
The Chinese wild card had no answer, though, to Badosa's fast start as the Spaniard made three service breaks to comfortably claim the opening set.
It was much closer in the second set as Badosa found herself down 3-1. She rallied and edged Zhang in the tiebreak.
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