Paris, June 4 (IANS) Young American star Coco Gauff fought off the challenge of Ons Jabeur of Tunisia after coming from a set down to reach her second French Open semifinal. Gauff registered a 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 win in under two hours at the Court Philippe-Chatrier. She’ll play defending champion Iga Swiatek or Wimbledon champ Marketa Vondrousova in the semifinals.
The American previously made her first Grand Slam final at Roland Garros in 2022. She advances to the last-four stage of a major for the fourth time overall, and for the third Grand Slam in a row, according to WTA stats.
Gauff and Swiatek are the only two active players under the age of 26 who have reached more than two Grand Slam semifinals.
The 20-year-old had to survive a nerve-wracking final service game with the Tunisian pushing for the break-back. Gauff finally got across the line when Jabeur crunched an overhead wide on the American’s third match point.
She becomes the sixth under-21 player this century to reach multiple semifinals at the French Open, following Martina Hingis, Kim Clijsters, Justine Henin, Ana Ivanovic, Maria Sharapova, and Iga Swiatek, according to WTA stats.
–IANS
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