WHAT HAPPENED: No. 3 seed Coco Gauff stayed the course in her title defense after narrowly escaping a third-round defeat at the 2024 US Open, battling past No. 27 seed Elina Svitolina, 3-6, 6-3, 6-3, to book a spot in the Round of 16.
“I knew today was going to be a tough match; every time I play Elina, she's a fighter,” Gauff said post-match. “But I served much better than the last match, except for that last game. Thankfully I was able to come back. [Arthur Ashe Stadium] always brings the energy and I really appreciate you guys.”
After taking extra time to fine-tune her serve prior to Friday’s contest, Gauff started strong against the 29-year-old Ukranian on Friday. But Svitolina had an answer for everything the American threw her way. Serving at 3-3 in the first, Svitolina fended off three break points to hold, then followed by taking the next eight points to break Gauff and clinch the first set.
The second set featured high-quality tennis from both ends of the court, but the momentum gradually began tipping in Gauff’s favor midway through the affair. When Gauff struck a forehand crosscourt winner to convert on a break point chance and take a 4-2 lead, the crowd in Ashe erupted. As if to quell any doubts about her serve, Gauff punctuated the second set with an ace out wide to send the match to a decisive third.
In a match full of highlight reel-worthy moments, perhaps the one that pleased the crowd—and Gauff—the most was a 37-shot rally that Gauff won early in the second game of the third set.
By then, Svitolina fell a bit out of sorts with her range, hitting four double faults and spraying multiple shots outside the court in just the first three games. As her frustration continued to build, Svitolina fell behind 2-5.
Serving for the match at 5-2, Gauff’s service woes crept back in under pressure, double-faulting and letting a 40-0 lead slip away to allow Svitolina to break and stay in the match. But returning serve in the next game proved much easier, as Gauff closed the match at love to clinch her 60th Grand Slam match win.
“I tried to be more aggressive on the forehand side and make less errors on the backhand,” Gauff said of her level of play. “She was playing well and hitting her spots. I think the difference was me being more aggressive and hitting my serve.”
WHAT IT MEANS: With every win in Flushing Meadows, Gauff is rediscovering her confidence in her game, which had wavered late this summer. Since bowing out of the Wimbledon Round of 16 to fellow American Emma Navarro, Gauff went 1-2 on the hard courts of Toronto and Cincinnati.
The 20-year-old defending champ has done well to regroup in Flushing Meadows, having only lost one set on her path to the fourth round.
Into the Round of 16 for the third consecutive year, Gauff now awaits the winner between No. 13 Navarro and No. 19 Marta Kostyuk. This could potentially set up a rematch of Gauff’s fourth-round loss to Navarro from Wimbledon earlier this summer. Against Kostyuk, Gauff is 2-1 in their head-to-head.
MATCH POINT: It’s been 10 years since a woman has successfully defended her US Open title. The last woman to do so was Serena Williams in 2014, when she twice defended her 2012 and 2013 titles.
Can Gauff be the one to break the spell and defend her title this fortnight?
