By Richard Pagliaro | Sunday, May 29, 2022
Coco Gauff tore through eight straight games dismissing Elise Mertens 6-4, 6-0 streaking into her second consecutive Roland Garros quarterfinal.
Photo credit: Adam Pretty/Getty
Streaking sideline-to-sideline, Coco Gauff flicked a full-stretch backhand that settled inside the baseline.
Even when she was pushed into defensive positions, Gauff delivered dynamic solutions.
More: Shapovalov Calls Double Fault on ATP and Wimbledon
Tearing through eight straight games, Gauff dismissed Elise Mertens 6-4, 6-0 streaking into her second consecutive Roland Garros quarterfinal.
Gauff has dropped just 23 games in four tournament wins, including dispensing a couple of bagels in eight sets, rolling into the quarterfinals. Afterward, Gauff said she's peaking in Paris.
"I definitely feel confident on the court," Gauff told the media in Paris. "I feel like it really suits my game. Yeah, and I feel like, you know, the previous tournaments this clay season I had some good wins but it wasn't really any outstanding results.
"I feel like it gave me a lot to learn from, and I think I'm taking those tough matches that I lost this season and really learning from them and I guess showing that I'm doing better."
The 18-year-old Gauff celebrated her high school graduation tossing her cap high into the sky in front of the Eiffel Tower eight days ago.
Today, Gauff threw everything at the veteran Mertens transitioning from defense to offensive brilliantly in her most complete performance of the tournament. Gauff will face compatriot Sloane Stephens, in a US Open rematch, for a spot in the final four.
Stephens one of only two Grand Slam champions still standing, stormed through 12 straight games slamming Swiss left-hander Jil Teichmann 6-2, 6-0.
The 18th-seeded Gauff joins 17th-seeded Leylah Fernandez as the second teenager into the last eight. Fernandez fought off 20-year-old American Amanda Anisimova 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 in a quality clash on Court Philippe Chatrier.
US Open finalist Fernandez, the highest remaining seed in the bottom half of the draw, will face 59th-ranked Italian Martina Trevisan in an all-lefty quarterfinal.
A dynamic Gauff extended points with her speed and exterminated them with striking shotmaking.
This match was a tale of two very different sets with both women trading drives in a tense 57-minute first set. Once Gauff pocketed the one-set lead, she powered through the second set.
Though Paris’ red clay is a long way from the Delray Beach Har-tru, commonly called American green clay, where Gauff learned her dirt skills, she’s found her comfort zone at Roland Garros.
Speedy, sliding retrievals helped Gauff stretch points and her skill reversing points, reading the opening and closing with command at net was impressive. Gauff, whose mom was a college sprinter, won 17 of 20 trips to net, including a perfect 10-for-10 in the frontcourt in the second set.
The pair traded four breaks in a row and stood even after six games. Serving at 4-5, Mertens ran into a major stress test. Stopping play during a rally, Gauff successfully challenged an out ball to earn set point.
Digging in, Gauff defended nearly everything Mertens through at her in a dazzling 31-shot exchange that spanned all corners of the court. Mertens kept calm, stepped in and slammed a smash saving set point with a lung-busting effort.
That was a temporary reprieve.
On her second set point, Gauff shrewdly drew the Belgian forward with a drop shot then played over her head with a lob. Racing back to the baseline, Mertens retrieved it, tossing up a defensive lob to extend the point. Gauff jumped all over the short ball jamming a forehand into the corner to cap a physical 57-minute first set with her third break of the day.
The 18th-seeded American’s eye-popping court coverage proved demoralizing.
Unable to pierce Gauff’s defense, Mertens was probing closer to the lines and paid the price. The Belgian sprayed a forehand dropping serve at love to start the second set.
An energized Gauff tore through 11 consecutive points charging out to a 3-0 second-set lead. When a weary Mertens slapped a forehand into net, Gauff seized her sixth straight game for a 4-0 second-set lead.
Six of the last 11 women's Grand Slam champions have been maiden major winners, including 150th-ranked qualifier Emma Raducanu at the US Open last September.
Former Roland Garros girls' champion Gauff believes she can take the title.
"For sure on clay, yeah, I feel a lot of confidence," Gauff said. "I feel the clay really well. I think, I really do think anything can happen. We do have our strong contenders in the tournament. Some people consider me one of them.
But I think going in, I don't think about other people's opinions on what's gonna happen in the draw or other players' opinions or what's gonna happen. Because I really truly believe that anybody can win no matter what.
"And not even just US Open but previous tournaments, you know, where people thought bigger players will win and those younger, smaller younger players, lower-ranked players came out on top."
The Gauff mantra for this tournament is fight for every point and have fun doing it. Looking like a player relishing the moment with plenty of room to run, Gauff will play for her first major semifinal on Tuesday.