Coco Gauff enjoyed a stress-free 6-3, 6-1 win over Magdalena Frech on Saturday afternoon to propel her into the second week of the US Open for a fourth consecutive year.
The third-seeded Gauff, 21, will be making her 16th appearance in the round of 16 at a major, breaking a tie for the second-most such appearances by an American woman before her 22nd birthday in the Open era.
“Overall I’m really happy with how i played and to be through to the next round,” said Gauff, who acknowledged the adjustment of playing a daytime match after two night matches and the challenge the shade on one side of the court presented in seeing the ball at times.
Two days after she double-faulted seven times and dropped four of her six service games in the opening set against Donna Vekic, Gauff had four double-faults total against Frech and won seven of eight service games, while converting 5-of-11 break point opportunities. She hit 76% of her first serves
“It’s been an emotional week … but I think I needed those tough moments to be able to move forward,” Gauff said. “I was putting so much pressure on myself, but I’m really out here just trying to enjoy it and not focus so much on results, but the process, and I think today showed that I was really having fun out there.”
Gauff will face the winner of Naomi Osaka vs. Daria Kasatkina in the fourth round. She is 3-2 in her WTA career against Osaka (1-1 in majors) and 0-3 vs. Kasatkina (this would be their first time meeting in a major).
ESPN Research contributed to this report.