Coco Gauff rallies past Belinda Bencic to claim quarterfinal spot in Australian Open

Coco Gauff defeated a tough Belinda Bencic 5-7, 6-2, 6-1 to secure her spot in the Australian Open quarterfinals. The world No. 3 faced a challenging match in the first half, but Bencic gradually lost consistency, and her errors took a toll.

In the first set, everything was tightly contested at the start. Bencic earned her first break point in the 6th game but couldn’t convert, keeping things level. The Swiss managed the first break and served at 5-4, but Gauff quickly recovered the break to level at 5-5.

Bencic repeatedly targeted Gauff’s forehand, which held firm to stay in the set. However, the Swiss eventually secured the break and won the set after a Gauff error, 7-5. Unforced errors were key, with Bencic committing 10 compared to Gauff’s 20.

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However, in the second set, Gauff came out with a fresh mindset and showed more strength under pressure. She secured an early break and raced ahead 3-0. With the lead on her side, the American maintained consistency on serve and didn’t allow any break opportunities throughout the set. At 5-2, Bencic faltered on her serve, and the American closed out the set 6-2, sending the match into a decider.

Gauff was particularly effective on serve, achieving a 67% first serve percentage and winning 81% of those points. In contrast, Bencic’s first serve percentage was 63%, with only 47% of those points won.

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In the third set, things initially seemed evenly matched as both players held their first service games. However, Bencic appeared physically drained, and Gauff took control from the baseline, forcing Bencic to run all over the court during rallies. Gauff dominated the latter part of the set, winning five consecutive games to secure victory with a final score of 5-7, 6-2, 6-1.

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