With a convincing victory over Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-2, Jasmine Paolini won the Italian Open on Saturday, making history for her second 1000 series title ahead of Roland Garros later this month.
Paolini, who defeated former US Open champion Gauff in straight sets to become the first Italian woman to win the Rome title since Raffaella Reggi in 1985. She also won in Dubai last year.
The 29-year-old won the first of three potential championships for local players at this year’s event in the Italian capital, wowing the crowded center court at the Foro Italico.
Paolini, who won two Grand Slam titles last year and will become the fourth man in the world on Monday, will be in good form in Paris following a fantastic home match.
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Paolini told reporters, “Every time I go on the court, I try to do so with joy, passion, and a certain amount of calm.”
“It’s important for me to go there and make an effort to have fun, not to take things lightly as such, but to avoid setting too high expectations.”
I do what I love doing, which is extremely fortunate.
After a “dream week,” Paolini danced with joy on the court and some fans yelled in the stands as she waited for her to win both the singles and women’s doubles competitions.
Veronika Kudermetova and Elise Mertens square off in another final on Sunday against The Tuscan and Sara Errani, who were present on Saturday.
Both Paolini and Errani will be favorites to keep their Rome title, which they won in the same year that it won their first Olympic gold in tennis in Paris.
Paolini joy
Vera Zvonareva won the only 1000 series tournament victory at Indian Wells in 2009, while Monica Seles was the last woman to do so in Rome in 1990.
With a hat-trick of Rome titles still in the cards, Paolini’s compatriot Jannik Sinner will face off against Carlos Alcaraz in a blockbuster men’s singles final on Sunday.
Paolini is the oldest woman to hold the title of first lady to win it in Rome during the Open era, while Gauff, who was eight years Paolini’s junior, was the only other American to do so since Serena Williams did it in 2002.
Paolini’s life isn’t really that easy, just like she did with her battling semi-final victory over Zheng Qinwen, who made 55 unforced errors and seven double errors on serve.
Gauff, who lost to her in the Madrid final earlier this month, was clearly upset with her performance, which had a two-part start and continued with shoddy shots throughout the match.
“Hopefully I can make it to the final of Roland Garros,” Gauff said to reporters, “and maybe the “third time lucky” thing is real.”
With those errors, I won the final. Made the final, though I wasn’t playing my best tennis. I can do well there if I can find that good form heading into Roland Garros, just because it gives me confidence.
Paolini’s performance came to an end with a sluggish service return attempt, which gave her possibly the biggest win of her career. Gauff, who will still be world number two heading into the French Open, lost five of her nine games.
Source: Channels TV
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