Coco Gauff (No. 2) suffered an early defeat at the
Cincinnati Open, losing to Kazakhstan’s
Yulia Putintseva (No. 33) in three sets after two hours of play. On an uneven day, Gauff struggled with her service and squandered a significant lead in the third set before falling 4-6, 6-2, 6-4.
The American failed to defend her title and lost 890 points, dropping her to world No. 3, while Aryna Sabalenka is set to become the new No. 2 as of Monday. Gauff’s next challenge will be at the US Open, where she will need to overcome her current inconsistencies as she defends her title.
Gauff's Title Defense Ends Early
Putintseva was not expected to be a threat so early in the tournament. The Kazakh has proven her worth this season with wins over players like Iga Swiatek, Zheng Qinwen, and Daria Kasatkina in recent months. Putintseva took the first set, capitalizing on Gauff’s evident serving issues.
Although the Kazakh, of Russian origin, struggled with her second serves in the second set, she eventually recovered in the third set to claim the victory. Gauff was a break up in the third set (4-2 with serve), but fell into a spiral of errors that cost her the match. Putintseva won the last four games in a row to seal the win.
Gauff recorded 8 aces compared to just 1 from her opponent; however, her 9 double faults proved costly, while Putintseva had none. The American won 3 of the 8 break points she had in the match (38%), while her opponent was more effective, converting 7 of 12 (58%).
Gauff’s next step will be the US Open, where she will enter with diminished confidence as she defends her title. It has been a challenging hardcourt swing for Gauff, and failing to repeat the title in New York could result in a significant drop in the rankings.
