Canada’s Andreescu knocked out by Gauff in San Diego Open 2nd round
Sixth-seeded American Coco Gauff beat Canadian Bianca Andreescu 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, showing off her spirited shot in the deciding third set of the round of 16 at the WTA 500 San Diego Open on Thursday .
« There were turns, but every game counted, every point counted, » Gauff said. « We both fought and the atmosphere was great. »
Gauff’s diving forehand just out of Andreescu’s reach sent her into Friday’s quarter-final match against top-seeded Iga Swiatek.
The match will be a replay of this year’s French Open final, won in straight sets by Swiatek, who also beat Gauff at the 2021 Italian Open.
« Iga is a champion, so we’ll see how things go this time, » said Gauff, 18, who has competed against Swiatek since they were both highly ranked juniors.
The US$757,900 San Diego WTA 500 Open, held at the Barnes Tennis Center in San Diego, features seven of the top 10 ranked players.
WATCH | Gauff eliminates Andreescu at the San Diego Open:
Bianca Andreescu of Mississauga, Ont., falls to American Coco Gauff 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 in the round of 16 at the San Diego Open.
Swiatek advances with a victory in 3 sets
Swiatek needed more than two hours to claim a 6-4, 4-6, 6-1 win over China’s Zheng Qinwen in her opener earlier Thursday.
Facing constant haze that caused a 30-minute delay just after the start of the match and a brief stoppage early in the second set, Swiatek rocked the hard-hitting 28th-seeded Zheng in the round of 16.
Playing on a hard, smooth surface, both players frequently used drop shots, which caused Swiatek to fall in the second set as she tried to return a successful drop drop from Zheng.
The first and second sets were tied at 4 all. In the first set, Swiatek broke Zheng’s serve for a 5-4 lead before holding serve.
With the score tied at 4-all in the second set, it was Zheng who broke Swiatek for a 5-4 advantage. Zheng fended off five break points before winning the ninth game. Zheng then broke Swiatek to tie the match at one set apiece.
As tight as the opening sets were, Swiatek quickly took a 5-1 lead in the third. She captured the deciding final match, earning four straight points at Love.
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