Coco Gauff escapes upset bid in second round at Australian Open

On By Littum

American Coco Gauff had to navigate an unexpected obstacle Wednesday in her march to the third round of the Australian Open.

Up a set and seemingly cruising to victory over Jodie Burrage of Great Britain, Gauff mysteriously failed to hold her serve as Burrage fought her way back into the match. After breaking Gauff twice, the 85th-ranked Burrage had a chance to serve for the set and make it level.

However, the moment was too much for her as a double fault dropping serve gave Gauff the opening she needed and tournament no. The 3-seed closed out a 6-3, 7-5 win.

“I think it was just one of those things, just raise my level against her,” she told reporters afterward.

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Gauff, the 2023 US Open champion, will next face Canadian Leylah Fernandez in the third round in Melbourne.

Gauff previously trained with left-handed compatriot Robin Montgomery to prepare Fernandez and beat the Canadian 6-3 6-2 in their first tour-level match at the recent United Cup.

“We will see in two days from now whether it makes a difference or not,” she said. “It’s a different game, a different story. Anything can happen.”

Featured: Reuters