
Click to view full size
LONDON (AP):There’s no panic in Coco Gauff.Down a set after untimely double-faults, Gauff rallied past Jessica Pegula 4-6, 6-3, 6-3 yesterday to reach the Wimbledon semi-finals for the first time.The two-time major champion raised her arms in the air after Pegula sent a weak backhand into the net on the first match point in an all-American quarterfinal on Centre Court.“I’ve been going three sets almost every match. I feel like when you have that faith in yourself as a competitor, when the match goes the distance, you know when you lose one set, you’re not panicking,” Gauff said in an on-court interview.With the victory, the 22-year-old Gauff became the youngest player to reach the semi-finals at all four Grand Slams since Maria Sharapova, who completed the feat at the 2007 French Open, the women’s professional tennis tour said.Gauff will face 10th-seeded Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic for a spot in Saturday’s final. Muchova, the 2023 French Open runner-up, eliminated Naomi Osaka 7-6 (4), 6-4 on No. 1 Court.In Gauff’s six previous appearances at the All England Club, she had never got past the fourth round. But perhaps experience at the grass-court major is starting to pay off.“I think after seven years playing this tournament it’s finally the first time I can walk on Centre Court and I didn’t feel nervous,” she said. “So I don’t know if I’m becoming a vet.”The “vet” was undone by early double-faults, though, putting herself in a hole to start the match. She led 40-0 right away but lost the next five points – including two on double-faults – to go down 1-0. After breaking Pegula in the sixth game, Gauff was immediately broken to love with two more double-faults.Gauff called the last two sets “really great tennis”.”Jess’ ball is so flat and low. So I think I just needed to address that ... be in there in the rallies and just play the tennis that I wanted to play. And I think I started to land more first serves in the court,” said Gauff, who cranked up one serve to 126 mph in the third game of the second set. “So I think that also helped and just trusting my shots.”Sinner beats StruffOn No. 1 Court, defending champion Jannik Sinner kept his title defence on track by beating Jan-Lennard Struff 7-5, 7-6 (4), 6-3 to advance to the semi-finals.The top-ranked Sinner continues to put his French Open meltdown behind him. He needed five sets to get past 50th-ranked Miomir Kecmanovic in the first round, but since then, theyhave been straight-set victories, allowing the 24-year-old Italian to avoid marathon sessions.Sinner will next face either seven-time Wimbledon singles champion Novak Djokovic or third-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime. The men’s final is on Sunday.In the completion of a fourth-round match, second-seeded Alexander Zverez beat Jiri Lehecka 6-4, 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 (6) to set up a quarterfinal today against sixth-seeded Taylor F
The portable companion to gazettE. Get notifications, track read articles, and more. The latest news from Trinidad and Tobago, in one place.
Related stories
See articles related to "Coco through to Wimbledon semis, Sinner advances"