Coco Gauff advanced to the Italian Open final on Thursday after defeating Sorana Cirstea in the Foro Italico.
Gauff, a serious contender for the Roland Garros title, defeated her Romanian opponent 6-4, 6-3 in the Italian capital.
After defeating Cirstea, Gauff will play Iga Swiatek or Elina Svitolina in the Italian Open final.
Is Coco Gauff the third-best player on the WTA Tour? 🤔
If not, who is?
Reaching the final in Italy represents an impressive feat, especially when considering that Gauff was only one point from exiting the event in the fourth round.
Gauff can take great pride in her efforts over the past week, and she has now entered rarefied air alongside the Williams sisters.
Coco Gauff joins Serena and Venus Williams in exclusive American group
As per OptaAce, Coco Gauff is the third player competing for America to reach consecutive finals in Rome since the introduction of the Tier I format in 1990.
Venus Williams and Serena Williams are the only other American players to have achieved the feat. Venus did so from 1998 to 1999, while Serena reached back-to-back finals in Rome from 2013 to 2014.
Venus, a five-time Wimbledon champion, was defeated in the 1998 final. She went one better a year later, defeating France’s Mary Pierce in the final.
Coco Gauff’s WTA 1000 results this year
- Qatar Open: second round [first match]
- Dubai Tennis Championships: semi-finals
- Indian Wells: third round
- Miami: runner-up
- Madrid: fourth round
- Rome: ?
Around 14 years later, Serena defeated Victoria Azarenka in the Italian Open final. In 2014, Serena defended her title, beating home favourite Sara Errani 6-3, 6-0 in the championship showpiece.
As for Gauff, she will be hoping to go one better at this year’s event, after losing the 2025 Italian Open final to Jasmine Paolini
Paolini, the sixth seed, defeated Gauff 6-4, 6-2 in Rome.
How did Coco Gauff react after losing the 2025 Italian Open final
In last year’s Italian Open final, Coco Gauff was second best, and she acknowledged this fact in her post-match press conference.
“Yeah, I mean, Jasmine played I think great tennis today. I think it was one of her best levels today.
“I also didn’t play my best level. I think it’s both.
“It’s not to discredit my opponent. She forced me to play that way. Yeah, maybe I could have served better and put more balls in the court, could play better. I definitely could and can.
“But she played to win today and she deserved to win.”
Paolini, meanwhile, could not hide her excitement after securing the title at her home event.
“Yeah, it’s pure joy,” the Italian told reporters in Rome. “It’s a dream to win in Rome, of course, I don’t know for every maybe kid that’s playing in Italy. It’s amazing. I’m really happy about it.
“I’m enjoying the moment. It’s an amazing one.”
