Coco Gauff defeats Katie Boulter with dominant service game in third round win

No. 4 seed Coco Gauff cruised to the fourth round of the China Open after a 7-5, 6-2 win over No. 26 seed Katie Boulter in Sunday’s match on the Diamond Court. Gauff’s win moves her match record at the tournament to 6-1.

The 20-year-old American came out strong in the first set, not conceding a single point in the first game. Under new coach Matt Daly, Gauff has been looking to tighten her service game, and that work seemed to pay off the match. Despite a double fault in the fifth game, Gauff’s service game looked sharp. She frequently pushed her opponent back to the baseline, and Boulter struggled to return serves. It wasn’t all easy for Gauff in the first set, though. After the American took a commanding 5-2 lead, Boulter pushed back with a run of her own. The 28-year-old British player achieved an important service break in the ninth game, allowing her to come back and eventually tie the set at 5-5. But Gauff was not out of it. Gauff sprang back to take the last two games with ease and with the help of Boulter’s miscues in the 12th game, winning the set 7-5.

The second set was much simpler for Gauff. She was in control the whole time despite Boulter’s efforts to make it close. After the pair defended their serves in the first two games, Gauff easily took the next three games with a key service break in the fourth game. Boulter struggled to return Gauff’s powerful serve and was unable to build any momentum throughout the set. Boulter’s service game was equally as shaky as her serve returns, particularly as she began to grab her shoulder in discomfort midway through the set. Gauff cruised to a 6-2 set win.

“I thought I played well. I knew what I needed to do, so I did my best to make the adjustments and do that,” Gauff said after the match.

This match was the pair’s third meeting and a welcome win for the American, who has struggled with double faults throughout the year. Sunday’s win also marks Gauff’s 47th WTA 1000 hard court win, moving her ahead of Caroline Wozniacki for the highest number before age 21 since the format was introduced in 2009.

Gauff advances to the fourth round, where she will face 2019 China Open champion Naomi Osaka.

—Reporting by Egan Ward