Coco Gauff, the American tennis player, who played as the third seed at the Wuhan Open, defeated her fellow countrywoman and sixth seed Jessica Pegula in straight sets 6-4, 7-5 in the final to win the coveted title in China. With that, the 21-year-old also claimed her 11th career singles title, including nine straight wins in the finals on hard courts, which is quite a feat considering that it’s just the early stages of her professional tennis career.
Notably, it was just the second appearance at Wuhan Open in China for Coco Gauff, and while the first set in the final was competitive, she managed to pull away from Jessica Pegula at the key stage to secure it in her favour 6-4. The second set began poorly for Gauff as she found herself 3-0 down
before reducing the deficit to 5-4, but still Pegula had the chance to force the decider on serve, which she wasn’t able to pull off.
The four straight games that Coco Gauff clinched during the business end of the second set gave her the title victory at the expense of her compatriot Jessica Pegula. After winning the Wuhan Open without dropping a single set, she was quoted as saying, as per BBC Sport, “I'd like to thank my team, it was a great Asian swing [of tournaments]. I'm going to call JC [her coach Jean-Christophe Faurel] out here; he originally didn't want me to come because I had a tough US Open but I had to prove him wrong.”
Coco Guaff applauded Jessica Pegula for her grit and determination in Wuhan Open
Gauff also applauded Pegula for her grit and determination to reach the final of the Wuhan Open by saying, “You're the three-set queen, so I was determined not to let you get there today because I felt like the odds would be in your favour in the third set.” During this WTA tournament, Jessica Pegula needed to play three sets in each of the five matches including the final, which takes a lot out of the players at the best of times.
Moreover, Pegula was appreciative of Gauff for winning the Wuhan Open and said, “It's an honour to play you, as a friend and fellow American in the final. It's our first final, so that was a lot of fun being able to play.”
