Coco Gauff had a tremendously tough matchup in the previous round of the Indian Wells, but she did better this time, keeping it in straight sets.
Even if the match went only two sets, Gauff still didn't have a really easy time. Lucia Bronzetti actually put up a pretty good fight against the American, likely better than anybody anticipated. She didn't give Gauff the same problems that Clara Burel gave her, but the American still had to work really hard to get the desired outcome.
The opening set started very shaky for the 19-year-old, who had to save multiple break points in the first two service games she had. She had her first break points early as well, but after two games, the score was 2-2. It was then that Gauff slowly took over breaking her opponent twice in four games to take the opening set 6-2.
The score might indicate that it was an easy time, but it really wasn't. She had to work hard, and she only found a breakthrough after a couple of games. The second set was quite similar in that regard. The first four games were rather uneventful, and the score was tied at 2-2.
It was only then that Gauff found a breakthrough, taking a 4-2 lead. She would get broken immediately to make the match interesting again, with the score now at 4-3 and Bronzetti on serve.
Neither player was able to create any kind of advantage, so the set ended up in a tie-break. That was not what Gauff needed, but she was able to outplay her opponent in it, taking it 7-5.
The ending was a bit more nerve-wracking than she needed, but she got it done. She's been winning 'ugly' so far this week, but that's what champions do. Up next can be Naomi Osaka.