Coco Gauff's serve is not at its best but she gets the breaks for a win
Against Valentova, an 18-year-old who won the junior title at the French Open last year and was competing in the main draw at a major tournament for the first time, Gauff got broken five times. Four of those came in the second set — and each time, the 21-year-old Floridian managed to immediately rebound to claim Valentova's very next service game.
'There is a sense of urgency after getting broken, for sure. You don't want to get too far behind. You don't want to get two breaks down. You can live with one break. But she's definitely got to serve better and do a better job of holding as the tournament progresses,' said Gauff's father, Corey. 'She's probably been one of the best returners of serve on the tour the last two to three months. But that's not what you want. You want to hold first, for sure. It's not really a break until you hold.'
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On Saturday, 2022 runner-up Gauff will try to reach the fourth round in Paris for the fifth consecutive appearance, facing another Czech player, Marie Bouzkova.
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Other winners in the women's bracket included No. 3 Jessica Pegula, who was the runner-up at last year's US Open, Australian Open champion Madison Keys, 18-year-old Mirra Andreeva, and 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova, who reached the 2019 final at Roland-Garros. Vondrousova, who is unseeded this year, eliminated No. 25 Magdalena Frech, 6-0, 4-6, 6-3, on Court 6 and then went out to sit in the stands at Lenglen to watch Gauff vs. Valentova.
In men's play, No. 1 Jannik Sinner ended the career of 38-year-old Richard Gasquet by beating the Frenchman, 6-3, 6-0, 6-4. No. 3 Alexander Zverev and No. 14 Arthur Fils won, while 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic took a medical timeout to deal with a bothersome toe but eliminated Corentin Moutet in three sets.
Novak Djokovic receives medical assistance on a blister during his second-round win over Corentin Moutet at Roland-Garros.
Christophe Ena/Associated Press
In the day's last match, No. 5 seed Jack Draper of Britain erased a couple of set points that would have forced a fifth and held on to defeat French showman Gael Monfils, 6-3, 4-6, 6-3, 7-5, across more than three hours under the lights in Court Philippe-Chatrier. In the stands? NFL wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., who won a Super Bowl with the Rams. Now the left-handed Draper goes from beating the 38-year-old Monfils to a high-profile matchup against 18-year-old João Fonseca on Saturday.
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