Cori Gauff survives massive scare, Elina Svitolina marches on at Gippsland Trophy

Elina Svitolina and the young gun Cori Gauff won their opening matches at the Gippsland Trophy on Monday, beating Andrea Petkovic and Jil Teichmann, respectively.

Svitolina scored a commanding 6-1, 6-4 triumph over Andrea Petkovic in an hour and 12 minutes, hitting six aces and defending eight out of ten break chances. Petkovic scored her first victory since October 2019 on Sunday but couldn't do much against the better-ranked rival, giving away 55% of the points behind the initial shot and suffering five breaks to propel Svitolina through.

The Ukrainian fended off no less than six break points in the opening game, avoiding an early setback and scoring breaks at love in games four and six for 6-1. They traded five breaks in set number two, with Svitolina securing three of those and moving over the top with a hold at love at 5-4.

The 14th seed Cori Gauff had to dig deep against Jil Teichmann, prevailing 6-3, 6-7, 7-6 in two hours and 45 minutes. Both players offered 12 break points to their rival, and it was the youngster who fended off nine of those, securing four breaks to cross the finish line first after a thriller. Cori grabbed the opener with three straight games and opened a 4-2 lead in set number two.

Teichmann pulled the break back at 3-4 and stayed competitive ever since, winning the tie break 8-6 to prolong the encounter. The American squandered a 4-1 advantage in the deciding set for more drama and another tie break that she claimed 7-5 following a service winner that pushed her over the top.

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