Tennis - Miami Open 2026: Coco Gauff battles back to book quarter-final place

American tennis star Coco Gauff is heading to her first quarter-final at the Miami Open after a hard-fought victory over Romania’s Sorana Cirstea Monday (23 March), 6–4, 3–6, 6–2.

Gauff edged a momentum-swinging opening set, defined by constant breaks of serve. After trading breaks through the middle stretch, Cirstea briefly moved ahead at 4–3. But Gauff steadied, holding under pressure before striking again for 5–4.

From there, she held her nerve – and her serve – to take the set.

In the second set, it looked like it could be another back-and-forth affair with Gauff and Cirstea trading breaks of serve early.

But then, at three games all, the Romanian went on a tear, winning five consecutive games and winning the set with relative ease.

Gauff reset for the third set, breaking early for a 2–0 lead. She didn’t look back from there, despite a 10-minute interruption to attend to a fan in the stands. The American raced to a 5–2 lead, forcing Cirstea to serve to stay in the match.

The reigning French Open champion broke again with a winner at the net to book her spot in the quarter-finals.

Gauff will face either compatriot Amanda Anisimova or Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic next.

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