Gauff fights back to reach China Open final

Coco Gauff, the fourth seed, defeated Paula Badosa in the first China Open final after going set and break.

The 20-year-old American dug deep to come through 4-6 6-4 6-2.

Spaniard Badosa served with a 4-3 lead in the second set, which was a 19th-ranked player but a former world number two.

However, Gauff eventually won the game in two hours and 21 minutes by breaking and rattled off the next four games to set up a decider.

Badosa, who was in the top 140th place in the world rankings in May, had a strong start to the semi-finals in Beijing, winning over Jessica Pegula, the second seed, and Jessica Pegula, the finalist.

And she took advantage of Gauff’s inconsistencies, particularly on her serve which produced 11 double faults, to win the opening set and break in the first game of the second.

After resuming her relationship with Brad Gilbert last month and avoiding contention for the US Open in the fourth round, Gauff is now working with new coach Matt Daly.

The American gained momentum as Badosa recovered with her composure after she dropped her first set of the week after saving four break points to avoid falling to 4-1 in the second set.

In the final match, Gauff broke three times to claim the victory as she competes for Auckland’s only title of the year so far in January.