Gauff Shocked By Keys In All-American Clash In Eastbourne

| by Alfredo Bassanelli

Coco Gauff will not be contesting her second final of the year at the Eastbourne International as she was upset by fellow American Madison Keys.

The American's first final came earlier this year in Auckland where she ultimately won a trophy by beating Rebeka Masarova in the final. Both of those players were in action this week however neither made the final. Masarova retired against Emma Navarro in Bad Homburg while Gauff lost to Madison Keys.

It was a matchup she was looking forward to hoping for the same result she had in the all-American clash against Pegula. It didn't work though as she was beaten by a very good Keys, the second time she's ever beaten Gauff on the WTA Tour.

Both sets were relatively simple for Keys. She's always been a good player but very streaky. It's either a good week or a bad week, there isn't really a middle ground. This week is a good week and in those, the American generally serves well. That was the key in this one. She served well, far better than Gauff overall which created easier rallies for her.

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2023 Wimbledon WTA Draw With Swiatek, Sabalenka, Rybakina & more

She still faced break points in both sets saving two of the three she faced. Another huge thing for a streaky player is confidence. Keys took an early lead in the opening set which was huge for her moving forward. After taking the opening set 6-3 relatively easily, she did face more trouble in the second set, especially since she fell behind early 0-2.

Despite that, Keys managed to pull back the break almost immediately which proved crucial in terms of winning the match. Had she allowed Gauff to run away with the lead, things could have been different but generally, being the better shot-maker, allowed her to prevail 6-3, 6-3. Gauff's lack of forehand once again proved the issue as she couldn't trade blows with Keys.

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