By Shrivathsa Sridhar
BENGALURU, May 22 (Reuters) - Coco Gauff is finding form at just the right time ahead of her French Open title defence, and with Aryna Sabalenka hampered by injury and things just not clicking for Iga Swiatek, the American has a golden opportunity to claim a third Grand Slam.
After dealing with illness and a fourth-round loss in Madrid, Gauff bounced back to reach the Italian Open final where she met an inspired Elina Svitolina.
Despite leaving Rome without the trophy, the 22-year-old
American took heart from her performance and said it would stand her in good stead when the French Open gets underway on Sunday.
"It definitely gives me a lot of confidence because I also played some players who are having great claycourt seasons and great seasons in general," Gauff told reporters following her semi-final victory over Sorana Cirstea.
"Overall, I feel like my game is getting better. There are moments that I still can fine-tune and do better.
"I definitely think it's going in the right direction."
Sabalenka, who lost to Gauff in last year's Paris final, arrives under an injury cloud after the world number one sustained a hip and lower back issue that limited her movement during her third-round defeat by Cirstea in Rome.
The four-times major champion will be a danger if she can shake off her injuries but questions remain over where the 28-year-old Belarusian stands alongside Gauff and Swiatek on the sport's slowest surface.
"The type of tennis that she plays, she hits the ball so aggressively, but it just doesn't always have the same effect on that surface," twice Paris runner-up Kim Clijsters said.
"She hasn't had great preparation and the confidence matches that she had a few months ago.
"For me, Iga and Coco are definitely a little bit more of a favourite."
ALL CLICKING
While Swiatek no longer carries the same claycourt aura that took her to four French Open titles, the Pole will be expected to go deep at her favourite venue.
"If you play well, if you feel the ball right, if you're doing the right things, it's all clicking, it's easy to enjoy," Swiatek said in Rome, where she lost to Svitolina in the semis.
"There are tournaments that you enjoy; there are tournaments where you feel you play terrible, you overall feel terrible. You need to accept that it can happen and move on, work so you have the opportunity to play good in the next one."
Beyond the top trio, big-hitting Stuttgart champion Elena Rybakina is eying a third Grand Slam title following her Australian Open triumph in January and Wimbledon success in 2022.
Svitolina's triumph in the Italian capital has propelled the Ukrainian into contention, while compatriot Marta Kostyuk also enters the mix after winning in Rouen and then claiming her first WTA 1000 title in Madrid.
Linz champion and Madrid runner-up Mirra Andreeva can also spring a surprise as the Russian 19-year-old continues her rise up the world rankings.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
