Coco Gauff isn't playing her best tennis this week, but she'll need to find out if she hopes to beat Elise Mertens in Indian Wells.
The Belgian is having one of those great weeks where she plays similar to what got her close to the Top 10 some time ago. She hasn't been on that level for a while but finds it again every once in a while, and it's been happening this week.
She produced an amazing performance to take down Naomi Osaka, who has had a really good week as well. She's serving well and hitting the ball really well, which should cause some problems for Gauff, who hasn't had the best week herself.
She's been winning matches this week, but there have been a few hiccups every now and then. It's going to be tough against Mertens, especially if she brings her best tennis.
Head-to-head:
Gauff and Mertens have played a couple of times so far, and the teenager has won every single time. They only played three times and the Belgian won only two sets, so generally, the matchup has favored her.
The thing to remember is that neither of those events was one of those when Mertens played really well. There will certainly be ways for Mertens to win this matchup, and it will take a really good serving performance.
She will also need to outperform Gauff from the baseline, which is not that unlikely. Gauff doesn't have the best baseline game, but she is very quick, so that's a good counter.
| Coco Gauff | Elise Mertens | |
| 3 | H2H | 0 |
| 3 | Rank | 28 |
| 19 | Age | 28 |
| 14-3 | 2024 W/L | 10-6 |
| 189-85 | Career W/L | 425-243 |
Prediction:
I will side with Gauff here simply because she's playing on home soil and the crowd should be able to cover her to victory. Despite Mertens' amazing week, I think her run has limits.
Prediction: Coco Gauff to win in three sets.
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