Gauff defeats Andreeva to reach US Open semi with Rybakina
by AFP · The42Updated at 22.46
COCO GAUFF SAVED two match points in rallying to defeat reigning French Open champion Mirra Andreeva 2-6, 7-6 (9/7), 6-2 in a US Open quarter-final on Wednesday.
Fourth-ranked Gauff, a 22-year-old American and two-time Grand Slam winner, advanced to Thursday’s semi-finals, where she will face Kazakh star Elena Rybakina.
Rybakina will jump to world number one in next week’s rankings after beating Chinese qualifier Zheng Qinwen 3-6, 6-1, 6-4.
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“Elena is the new world number one,” Gauff said. “It’s going to be a tough match. These are the moments you live for.”
Rybakina has a 1-1 career record against Gauff, winning a semi-final last month in Canada after Gauff won their only other meeting in Canada in 2022.
Current world number one Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus and third-ranked American Jessica Pegula will meet in the other semi-final.
Gauff won all five prior meetings with Andreeva, including a victory on the way to the 2023 US Open title and another in this year’s Rome quarter-finals.
Fifth-ranked Russian teen Andreeva won her first major title at Roland Garros but was foiled in her bid to beat Gauff despite owning two match points in the second-set tiebreak.
“I just had to reset. I came out not feeling the ball, giving her too many free points,” Gauff said.
Andreeva dominated the opening set, but Gauff broke for a 4-2 edge when Andreeva sent a backhand long, only for the Russian to break back in the seventh game when Gauff sent a forehand wide.
Andreeva netted a forehand volley to surrender a break in the eighth game but Gauff, serving for the set in the ninth game, netted a forehand for a fourth consecutive break as they battled into a tie-breaker.
“I was just trying to leave the court without regrets,” Gauff said.
Gauff rescued two match points in the tie-breaker when Andreeva smacked forehands wide and long, then captured the final two points for the set when Andreeva sent a forehand long, then netted a forehand.
In the third set, Gauff broke for a 2-1 lead, seized another break and a 5-2 edge when Andreeva netted a forehand and then held for the victory.