Gauff continues great clay run with win over Kanepi at Emilia-Romagna Open

Tuesday, 18 May 2021 at 15:05

American phenom Coco Gauff continued her great clay run that started in Rome with a win over Kanepi in the first round of the Emilia-Romagna Open.

Coco Gauff took the tennis world by surprise after a deep run at the Rome Masters that included great wins over players like Sabalenka and Sakkari. She was leading Ashleigh Barty 1-0 in sets when the Australian retired from the match propelling the young phenom to her first WTA 1000 semifinal.

In it she was overmatched by Swiatek but it was a run that showed her adept skills on clay. Gauff continued her good play on the surface by defeating Kaia Kanepi in the 1st round of the Emilia-Romagna Open. It took a while for Gauff to find her rhythm as she was down a break twice in the opening set.

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At 5-4, Kanepi served for the match but Gauff broke her at the perfect time with the set going into the tiebreak. It was a very tight one with Gauff emerging victorious with 8-6. After winning that opening set her play became much more dominant. Her serve improved allowing her to win points easier while Kanepi's deteriorated.

Gauff, known as a great mover on the cour, frustrated Kanepi with her defence forcing her into mistakes. Gauff took a decisive 5-1 lead but Kanepi was able to pull it back to 5-5. In the end, Gauff ended it in a tiebreak.