Coco Gauff and Leylah Fernandez put on a Sunday thriller for the crowd at the China Open.
The pair went the distance in a tight three-setter that saw Gauff emerge victorious, as she took the match 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 and booked her place in the third round.
The game took 2 hours and 45 minutes to complete as Fernandez took advantage of Gauff’s nine double faults to force a third set.
Coco Gauff survives scare in Beijing
Gauff had cut close in the third set too, after she threw away a three-game lead to allow Fernandez to level the set 5-5.
Nevertheless, the American, who has never lost to Fernandez, closed out the match by winning the next two games and keeping her title defence hopes in Beijing alive.
If Gauff is to win her second consecutive China Open title, she will have to avoid letting her serve quality drop, as it did against Fernandez.
The 21-year-old’s first serve percentage dropped from 75 per cent to 53 per cent in the second set, and with Belinda Bencic coming up for her next, it’s hard to see how she will get away with another poor service game.
“She definitely played great tennis,” Gauff said about Fernandez.
“I thought she was being aggressive, striking the ball pretty well. She wasn’t really giving me much free points either. I wish I was more aggressive in some moments.
“I could tell she stepped up the aggressiveness in the second. I think in that 3-2 game on those break points, I should have put the ball deeper and maybe tried to get her to open up the court.
“The conditions were so slow, which I feel like she does well with that because she likes to take the ball so early. So I felt like my heaviness wasn’t doing a lot with her as the balls got older. I found when I had new balls, I would win, like, two or three games in a row.
“I think the toughest part was just dealing with the conditions and trying to feel like I could hit through her, but I couldn’t do that as well today as I felt like I did earlier this year.”
Gauff has got off to a winning start in ChinaGETTY Carlos Alcaraz didn’t hold back when asked about the need for change at majorsGETTYWhile at the China Open, Gauff was once again asked about the players’ desire for a better deal in prize money from the four Grand Slams.
Coco Gauff backs Carlos Alcaraz’s call for rule change at Grand Slams
While at the China Open, Gauff was once again asked about the desire by players for a better deal in prize money from the four Grand Slams.
It comes after recent US Open winner Carlos Alcaraz called the current situation ‘a mess’ at the Japan Open just days ago.
“I mean, overall it’s been a long, long process with that,” said Gauff about trying to get a better deal
“We have a player representative. I like to keep most of the comments for him because they did have a meeting this week. I was not a part of it because I had practice at the same time.
“I think the goal is just obviously increasing the percentage of prize money, but also making it better, not just for us but throughout the field.
“The top 10 signed a letter as a representation of the entire tour, within the top 200 or top 300, I would say.
“Unfortunately, it’s like that: the top players, you can put more pressure, your voices are heard a little bit more. We try to take advantage of that and use it. I think the biggest message is not just to benefit us, it’s to benefit all the players.”
The letter that Gauff is referring to is a document sent to all four majors on July 30, but has only come to light recently.
It was signed by most of the sport’s top players, including Aryna Sabalenka, Gauff, Iga Swiatek, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner.
This is the second letter sent this year, with the first coming in March.
Novak Djokovic is the only player who signed the original letter but did not sign the latest one.
According to The Athletic, the letter targets areas like player welfare, prize money and player representation.
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