Coco Gauff displayed her trademark resilience at the French Open on Wednesday, overcoming early struggles to defeat fellow American Madison Keys in the quarterfinals. Despite battling 10 double faults and a sluggish start, the No. 2-seeded Gauff came back to claim a 6-7 (6), 6-4, 6-1 victory, clinching her third trip to the semifinals at Roland Garros.
“I have had that in me from a young age,” Gauff said after the win, via ESPN News Services. “When times become more difficult, knowing that I can dig deep in those tough moments.”
Gauff, 21, also credited her competitive drive: “Just a love to win, the will to win. It's not something that's taught or anything. It's just I have always had that in me.”
Gauff dropped the first set, which included three double faults in the tiebreaker. Keys, the No. 7 seed and winner of the Australian Open in January, capitalized on Gauff’s early inconsistency to build a 4-1 lead in the second set. However, Gauff switched to a different racket, hoping for a mental and physical reset.
“Maybe it did, and maybe it didn't. I'd like to think that it helped a little bit,” she said.
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From there, Gauff won four straight games and ultimately captured eight of the final nine, holding her serve four consecutive times to close out the match. She made just two unforced errors in the final set, including a single double fault.
Keys acknowledged the challenge of facing Gauff’s speed and defensive skills, saying, “The court being a little bit slower, coupled with the fact that she covers the court so well, just put a little bit of pressure on me.”
Gauff will now face French wild card Lois Boisson in the semifinals. Boisson’s run has been one of the tournament’s biggest stories, making her the first woman to reach the semifinals in her Grand Slam debut since Jennifer Capriati in 1990.
Gauff is now 4-0 at Roland Garros after dropping the first set but winning the second, tying her with Elina Svitolina for the most such comebacks since 2019. She also became the youngest woman to reach 25 main-draw wins at Roland Garros since Martina Hingis.