Gauff rolls into Burrage, sets Fernandez up at Australian Open

No. No. 3 seed Coco Gauff extended her winning streak to nine matches with a 6-3, 7-5 defeat of Jodie Burrage in the second round of the Australian Open, although she had to come from 5-3 down in the second set to rally. world no. 173.

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Gauff’s speed and consistency saw her ease into a 3-1 lead in the second over Burrage, who is coming back from wrist and ankle injuries that saw her sidelined for six months in 2024. However, the Brit threatened to turn the tables with a run of four games in a row before Gauff answered with four straight of his own to get over the finish line.

“She was doing really well, so I was just trying to make it, honestly,” Gauff said in his on-court interview. “All the first-serve points I started on defense. She really stepped up in the middle of the second set, so I just tried to be offensive when I could.”

The result sets up a popcorn third-round meeting with the 2021 US Open finalist and No. 30 seed Leylah Fernandez. The pair first met in United Cup action two weeks ago, with Gauff winning 6-3, 6-2. Fernandez fired 30 winners to get through a 2-hour and 40-minute match against Cristina Bucsa 3-6, 6-4, 6-4.

More to come…