Qatar Open 2024: Coco Gauff suffers shock first-round exit
The 2023 US Open champion was defeated in straight sets by Czechia's Katerina Siniakova in the opening WTA 1000 tennis event of the season.
Tennis
Coco Gauff suffered a shock defeat in her opening match at the Qatar Open, going down 6-2, 6-4 against Czechia's Katerina Siniakova on Tuesday (13 February).
It was the 2023 US Open champion's first match since a semi-final loss at the Australian Open last month, and she struggled to find any rhythm in the first set of the WTA 1000 tennis tournament in Doha, going down 6-2.
Seeded second in Qatar, USA's Gauff rallied early in the second to go 4-0 up.
But seasoned campaigner Siniakova, ranked 42 in the world and better-known for playing doubles, refused to give up, and won six-consecutive games to win the second set, and the match.
Siniakova will take on Gauff's compatriot, Danielle Collins, in the Round of 16.