Badosa tops error-prone Gauff; to the Australian Open semi-finals

MELBOURNE, Australia — Coco Gauff’s forehand and serve abandoned her in the worst way and at the worst time at the Australian Open on Tuesday, and the No. 3-seeded Americans were eliminated in the quarterfinals by No. 11 Paula Badosa from Spain 7. -5, 6-4.

Gauff entered the match at Rod Laver Arena with a 9-0 record in 2025 and on a 13-match winning streak dating back to her title at the WTA Finals in November. Using tweaks to some keystrokes to great effect in the hope of winning a second Grand Slam title at the age of 20, the 2023 US Open champion had dropped just one set through four matches at Melbourne Park this year.

“She’s full of confidence. But I’m also playing well,” Badosa said ahead of the competition. “I’m ready to meet her.”

Was she ever. And Badosa is now heading to her first Grand Slam semi-final at the age of 27.

Gauff finished with 41 unforced errors, a total that included six double faults – including on the final point of the game that put Badosa ahead 5-2 in the second set – and 28 missed forehands.

She never earned so much as a single break point until she was already down a set and a break in the second.

Badosa reached a career-best ranking of no. 2 in 2022, but then dealt with a serious back injury that caused her to consider ending her tennis career.

“I never thought a year from now I’d be here,” Badosa said. “I’ve been through a lot. Before, I was one of the best players in the world.”

She will next go up against no. 1 Aryna Sabalenka, the two-time defending champion in Melbourne, or no. 27 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, runner-up at the 2021 French Open. Their quarter-final was to be played on Tuesday night.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.