Gauff fights past Keys to book French Open semi-final spot
COCO GAUFF CAME back from a set down to beat Australian Open champion Madison Keys in an error-strewn quarter-final at Roland Garros on Wednesday.
The second seed battled past her fellow American 6-7 (6/8), 6-4, 6-1 in a tense last-eight clash littered with a whopping 14 double-faults and 101 unforced errors.
Gauff will face the winner of the last quarter-final between Mirra Andreeva and world number 361 Lois Boisson for a place in her second French Open final on Thursday.
'It means a lot, especially getting through this tough match today, it wasn't an easy match and I'm very happy to get through it,' she said.
'I'm so excited to be in the semi-finals back here again and have a lot more work to do. Just savour this one today and then next one tomorrow.'
Keys came through a tense first set in a tie-break after blowing a 4-1 lead with a double-break, but Gauff upped her level enough to fight back.
The 21-year-old was the runner-up to Iga Swiatek in a one-sided showpiece match in 2022.
Keys had been hoping to challenge for a second consecutive Grand Slam title, but failed to reach the semi-finals in Paris for a second time.
Advertisement
Gauff will be hoping to go at least one better than last year when she was beaten by Swiatek in the last four.
Both players seemed to struggle with nerves early on with six breaks of serve in total in the first set.
They also made 10 double-faults between them in the opener, while an off-colour Keys made 28 unforced errors and Gauff, who missed a set point in the 10th game, 21.
However, it was the seventh seed who finally fell over the line and into a one-set lead when Gauff followed her seventh double-fault by sending a wild return sailing wide of even the tramlines.
Gauff improved slightly to take a 4-1 lead herself with a double-break in the second set, only to gift Keys a way back into it with a sloppy service game finished off by another double-fault.
Keys made it three successive games with a forehand winner to level at 4-4, but then gave up the 11th break of the match.
Gauff served it out to force a decider as her opponent dumped a backhand into the net.
The 2023 US Open champion found some consistency in the third set, which was enough to ease to a victory sealed with a break to love when Keys blazed a forehand long.
– © AFP 2025
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Independent
an hour ago
- Irish Independent
Shane Lowry moves into contention with second round 68 at Canadian Open
The world number 12 followed an opening bogey with three birdies and while he didn't play as well as he did for his first round 64, he gave his iron play another workout as he dials in his spin control for Oakmont next week. 'I didn't play as well, but it was probably one of those where I probably felt like the golf course was easier than it was because I played so good yesterday,' said the Offaly man, who was tied for fourth with Ryan Fox, Jake Knapp and Cristobal Del Solar on eight-under, just four shots behind early halfway leader Cameron Champ. 'I didn't hit it close enough today and didn't really do much really well, drove it a bit poorly. 'But you're kind of going out there to put yourself in a position going into the weekend now. But I think the scoring and the course was actually a bit more difficult today than yesterday.' Starting on the back nine at TPC Toronto in cool and breezy conditions, Lowry dropped a shot when he missed the first of seven fairways at the 10th before going bogey-free from there. He made a 30-footer for birdie at the 13th and an eight-footer for another at the 15th to move to seven-under before using his short game to keep his momentum going. At the tough, 508-yard 17th, he was 66 yards short of the green in two after finding rough off the tee but flicked a wedge to eight inches to set up his par four. He didn't birdie the gettable par-five 18th or first holes but after missing chances early on the back nine, he got away with a pulled drive and made a 25-footer for another birdie at the fifth, then watched a 10-footer fall in the side door for par at the 220-yard seventh. 'It was beautiful out there yesterday, and there wasn't much wind at all,' Lowry said of the contrast between rounds. 'There was a bit of wind up this morning, and when you're down in the valleys and between the trees, it kind of swirls a little bit. 'So it was tough to get that right and with softer greens, it's very hard to get the ball pin high here. So you need to be in full control of your ball.' Lowry has made no secret of the fact that he's looking forward to the challenge of Oakmont, where he was tied second in the 2016 US Open, and he believes this week's test can help. 'I think there's a lot of iron shots that are going to be needed for next week,' he said. 'Taking spin off and been really in control of your spin and your trajectory.' Big-hitting Champ took advantage of just his sixth start of the season in Canada, going bogey-free for the second day running as he added to a 66 to his opening 62 to lead by three shots in the clubhouse on 12-under from Thorbjorn Olesen (70) and Richard Lee (64). Rory McIlroy was in the afternoon wave but after opening with a 71, he needed at least a three-under 67 to make the projected two-under cut.
Irish Examiner
an hour ago
- Irish Examiner
Carlos Alcaraz feels he pushed Lorenzo Musetti to the limit in French Open semi
Carlos Alcaraz felt he pushed Lorenzo Musetti to the limit as he reached a second successive French Open final. The defending champion secured his place in Sunday's Roland Garros showpiece after Italian eighth seed Musetti, who had won the first set, retired in the fourth while trailing 4-6 7-6 (3) 6-0 2-0. 'It's not the way that I want to win, to make the final,' said Alcaraz. 'I just wished him a speedy recovery. I hope to see him soon, on court again, enjoying his tennis again. 'In the first set I had a few break points that I couldn't make. I tried to stay there. I knew that I had chances. I was playing great. 'It was just about a few mistakes or few things that made the difference in the first set. 'Then in the second set, it was pretty close as well. I ended up playing a great tie-break. I think his level went down a little bit, and I made the most of it. 'At the beginning of the third set, I knew what I had to do. I'm pushing him to the limit, try to make him run from side to side. 'In the end, you know, he had to retire, but I think it was a really important moment the beginning of the third set.' The 22-year-old Spaniard now has the chance to become the first man to retain the title since his idol, Rafael Nadal, managed it in 2020. Musetti played some exquisite tennis in the first two sets under the roof on Court Philippe-Chatrier. But the 23-year-old had treatment on his leg during a one-sided third set and called it a day after Alcaraz won nine games in a row. There were echoes of a match here four years ago when Musetti retired against Novak Djokovic at 4-0 down in the fifth, later saying he was not injured but that he quit because he was 'not able to win a point'. This time he revealed he had a problem with his thigh. 'I felt it at the beginning of the third when I was serving, I started losing a little bit of strength on the left leg, behind,' he said. 'Definitely it was going worse and worse, so I decided to stop. I think it was the right decision to make, even if it was not what I wanted.' Musetti is scheduled to play at Queen's Club in just over a week in the build-up to Wimbledon. But he added: 'It's too early to say. Of course in the programme it's next tournament Queen's, and then of course Wimbledon. 'But of course we are going to evaluate tomorrow what the examinations will say, and take a decision for what's next.'
Irish Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Lowry firmly in contention in Canada as McIlroy hits disastrous quadruple
Shane Lowry is firmly in contention heading into the weekend of the RBC Canadian Open. The Offaly man shot a solid two-under-par second round of 68 to sit on eight-under-par for the tournament. Lowry is four shots behind American Cameron Champ, whose opening rounds of 62 and 66 have given him a three-shot lead over Dane Thorbjorn Olesen and Canadian Richard Lee. The former Open champion began his round with a wild tee shot on the par-four 10th hole that cost him a dropped shot. But Lowry steadied the ship with a birdie on the 13th hole before picking up two more shots without any mistakes to sign for a 68. The 38-year-old has enjoyed one of his most consistent seasons on the PGA Tour but is looking for his first win. Final rounds have cost Lowry this season. He is currently ranked 106th for round four scoring average on the tour. Two-time Canadian Open champion Rory McIlroy is currently out on the course and facing an uphill battle to make the cut. McIlroy struggled to a one-one-par in his opening round and his second round got off to a disastrous start when he racked up a quadruple bogey 8 on the par four fifth hole. After pushing his tee shot into the left rough, the Master champion then badly pulled his second shot out of bounds. His second ball went flying over the ground, and McIlroy made a mess of things around the green to card a card-wrecking score. At the time of writing the cut is two-over-par, meaning that McIlroy is currently seven shots behind the number needed to make the weekend in Ontario. McIlroy's last missed cut was at the 2024 Open Championship at Royal Troon last July.
