World No. 3 Coco Gauff made a stunning comeback against Romania’s Sorana Cirstea at the Madrid Open, securing a 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 victory. Despite facing a set and break deficit, the American displayed resilience and endurance to advance to the fourth round.
Cirstea, seeded 25th, started strong by breaking Gauff early in the match and winning the first set 6-4. She maintained control even as Gauff briefly leveled the score at 4-4 before securing the set.
In the second set, Cirstea continued her lead, going up 2-0 and later 4-3. However, Gauff fought back, overcoming a health issue on court to break and level the set. Demonstrating composure, she pushed through to break Cirstea in the 12th game, forcing a decider.
With a surge in the third set, Gauff dominated, winning five consecutive games to claim victory in two hours and 21 minutes. This win marked her eighth three-set victory of the season and extended her perfect head-to-head record against Cirstea to 3-0.
Gauff’s next challenge will be against 13th seed Linda Noskova for a spot in the quarterfinals. Noskova advanced due to a walkover from Liudmila Samsonova. Gauff holds a 2-0 lead in their head-to-head encounters on hard courts.
