Coco Gauff beats Wang Qiang in straight sets to claim second WTA title
The 17-year-old added to the title she won in Linz in 2019.
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Your support makes all the difference.Coco Gauff won her second WTA title with a dominant victory over Wang Qiang at the Emilia-Romagna Open.
The 17-year-old has hit form on the clay this season and she eased to a 6-1 6-3 success against China’s Wang to add to the maiden title she won in Linz in 2019.
Gauff is the fifth teenager to win a singles title on the WTA Tour already this season and she will hit a career-high ranking of 25 on Monday, meaning she will be seeded for the French Open.
Gauff then added a second trophy in the doubles alongside Caty McNally, the young American pair defeating Darija Jurak and Andreja Klepac 6-3 6-2.
Gauff is the youngest player to win the singles and doubles titles at the same event since Maria Sharapova in Birmingham in 2004.
At the Serbia Ladies Open, Spain’s Paula Badosa won her first WTA title when opponent Ana Konjuh retired trailing 6-2 2-0.
Both players had won semi-finals earlier in the day, with Badosa beating Viktoriya Tomova 6-1 6-2 and Konjuh seeing off Maria Camila Osorio Serrano 7-6 (6) 7-6 (4).
Konjuh, who was suffering with a right hip injury, was playing in her first final since 2017 after recovering from long-term elbow problems.
The 23-year-old Croatian broke down in tears during the trophy ceremony as she thanked her family and coach, saying: “We’ve been through hell and back the last few years. Thanks for sticking by my side. I hope that this is only the start of good times.”