Gauff Moves Into Fourth Round In Madrid To Keep Challenge For Swiatek's No. 2 Spot Alive

Coco Gauff bested compatriot Ann Li in two very straightforward sets to reach the fourth round at the 2025 Madrid Open.

Gauff was on the brink of losing in her first match at the WTA 1000 event in Madrid. The 21-year-old American took on Dayana Yastremska, and the Ukrainian was able to win the opening set of the match 6-0. But Gauff then rallied back to win in three sets.

In the third round, the 2023 US Open champion took on Ann Li, who upset Aliaksandra Sasnovich and Leylah Fernandez to reach the third round of the tournament. However, in their only previous meeting, in Berlin in 2022, Gauff beat Li in two sets.

This time, it was Li who opened better, leading 2-0 after winning eight of the first 11 rallies. The 24-year-old played well, while Gauff once again let her opponent escape with a break early in the match. This time, however, she was able to stop the bleeding quite quickly.

While Yastremska kept winning game after game and beat Gauff 6-0 in the first set, in this match, it was the WTA World No. 4 player who ended up winning six games in a row in the first set. After losing the first two games, Gauff went on a long streak, turning the set around and winning it 6-2.

The fourth seed was able to significantly improve her level, and it was exactly what she needed to gain some needed confidence. Gauff has struggled a lot with her level recently, and it seemed that she finally found it in this match.

As the match progressed, Gauff kept winning points and games. After two games played in the second set, the 21-year-old enjoyed a 2-0 lead, but her opponent then immediately broke back.

However, Gauff added one more break to lead 3-1, and this time, she confirmed it with a hold, even though through a deuce, to increase her lead to 4-1.

Both players then easily held their serves, but since Li was back by a break, it was enough for Gauff to win this match 6-2, 6-3, reaching the fourth round of the 2025 Madrid Open.

The fourth seed will now await the winner of the match between the 16th-seeded Beatriz Haddad Maia and Belinda Bencic. With this win, she also moved closer to overtaking Iga Swiatek at the World No. 2 position.

The Polish player is the defending champion in Madrid, and if Gauff or Jessica Pegula significantly outscore her this week, Swiatek might lose the World No. 2 spot.