Coco Gauff advances to Australian Open semi-finals after beating Marta Kostyuk

Nineteen-year-old Coco Gauff, the US Open champion, faced strong resistance from the unseeded Marta Kostyuk, aged 21, on Tuesday but managed to secure her first Australian Open semi-final berth. In challenging conditions on Rod Laver Arena, the American fourth seed persevered against the Ukrainian, winning a closely contested match 7-6 (8-6), 6-7 (3-7), 6-2 in a duration of three hours and eight minutes.

Gauff is set to go up against either the defending champion and second seed Aryna Sabalenka or the ninth-seeded Barbora Krejcikova in the semi-final on Thursday, with the winner earning a spot in the final.

Despite Gauff’s impressive performance in earlier rounds, her latest display was not as convincing. Struggling on serve and missing numerous opportunities, she acknowledged the challenges faced during the match. Gauff expressed her satisfaction with the hard-fought victory, stating, “Happy, really proud of the fight I showed today.” This marks a significant achievement for Gauff, who had not advanced beyond the fourth round in her four previous attempts at Melbourne Park.

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Both players contributed to the low standard of play, evidenced by an astonishing 16 service breaks and a combined total of 107 unforced errors during the match.

Kostyuk will regret missed opportunities, particularly squandering a 5-1 lead and failing to convert set points in the first set.

The American also faced challenges at crucial moments, getting broken while serving for the match at 5-4 in the second set. However, she maintained composure as Kostyuk grew more frustrated in the deciding set.

Reflecting on the match, she mentioned, “I was just trying to secure one more game in the first set to make it competitive, and then it turned into another, allowing me to win the set. In the second set, I had opportunities but became somewhat passive. As I entered the third set, my focus was on playing aggressively and hitting through the court.”

Gauff’s victory has now stretched her unbeaten streak to 10 matches this year, building on her earlier win in Auckland.

Her journey to the semi-finals has been noteworthy as she hasn’t encountered a seeded opponent, benefiting from the early exits of several top names in the tournament.