Coco Gauff loses at Miami Open Round of 16 to 23rd-ranked Carolina Garcia
Caroline Garcia once crushed Coco Gauff’s dream of winning her first U.S. Open back in 2022 when she bounced Coco out in the quarterfinals in Queens.
On Monday in Miami Gardens in the Round of 16, Garcia struck again in upsetting the third-seeded Gauff, 6-3, 1-6, 6-2 in Gauff’s hometown tournament at the Miami Open.
Gauff, who lost in Miami in the third round in 2023, still is looking for a breakthrough at a tournament at which she commutes from Delray Beach.
While Gauff has a Grand Slam title from the 2023 U.S. Open, she has failed to weave any success in Miami despite the Dolphins Stadium crowd being all for the 20-year-old local sensation.
“I think honestly it's just tough matches over the years,’’ Gauff said in explaining her Miami woes. “I feel like I know how to play with home pressure, especially after the whole U.S. swing last year, so I didn't feel any nerves coming in today or at all this week.
"I think I'm the type of person every loss kind of weighs on me heavy, especially one like today where I felt like I could have done better and I felt like I had the match in control, especially after the second (set). Honestly, if anything, it kind of helps being home so I can just drive and be home and be in my own bed.’’
Gauff smiled but the hurt was evident in losing to the 23rd-ranked Garcia for a third straight time. The Spaniard is on a roll after beating another Grand Slam winner in Japan's come-backing Naomi Osaka in the third round. She now faces Danielle Collins, a St. Petersburg resident, in the quarterfinals.
It's definitely a great match and great win for me," Garcia said. "Last couple of months have not been easy, and definitely today, following the (Osaka) match, it means a lot. It was some great tennis."
In the opening game of the third set, Garcia survived four break points before winning the game and dominated from there to break a streak of losing seven straight matches to Top-10 players.
“It was an up-and-down match,’’ Gauff said. “She played aggressive, which I knew coming in. I think it was really important for me to just change the height of the ball, and I did that well for the majority of the second set. Then starting off the third with an early break, it just completely changed the momentum.’’
Since losing in the semifinals of the Australian Open to Aryna Sabalenka, Gauff has been amidst a dry spell. Her Middle East segment of the tennis season in February didn’t go well. She lost in the Indian Wells semifinals in the previous tournament against a beatable opponent in Maria Sakkari.
“This is a tough loss,’’ Gauff said. “ I do think one positive is the serve. I got broken a lot today. I don't think it was because of my serving. I went from hitting 17 double faults in Indian Wells (in the quarterfinals) to only three today. So that's something that can continue to improve, and it did in a short amount of time.’’
More: Coco Gauff helps unveil refurbished tennis courts at Delray Beach's Pompey Park
The European claycourt season now looms for Coco, who will play Stuttgart, Madrid and Rome before culminating in the French Open.
“I am excited,’’ Gauff said. “I wish I could have did better this hard-court season, but I am excited for clay.’’
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Coco Gauff makes early exit at Miami Open, falling to Carolina Garcia
