China Open 2024: Coco Gauff dominates Karolina Muchova to take second career WTA 1000 title
Gauff returned to form as she repeated her straight-sets win over the Czech from Cincinnati last year to claim her second title of 2024.
Tennis
Coco Gauff produced a sparkling display to beat Karolina Muchova in the final of the China Open on Sunday (6 October).
Last year's U.S. Open champion put recent struggles with her serve and forehand behind her to win 6-1, 6-3 at the end of her first tournament since announcing her split with coach Brad Gilbert.
This was Gauff's first triumph since retaining her Auckland title in January, securing her second career WTA 1000 success having also defeated Muchova in last year's Cincinnati final.
In marked contrast to her previous matches this week in Beijing, Gauff started confidently on serve with an ace to open proceedings as she held to love. Muchova looked nervous early on, missing her first serve and allowing the fourth seed to convert a third break point for a 2-0 lead.
Having comfortably defeated home favourite Zheng Qinwen on Saturday, the Czech was toiling here. She failed to win a point on her next two return games and was broken to love as a rampant Gauff took a 5-1 lead. Muchova finally put pressure on Gauff’s serve in the seventh game, but the Atlanta native converted her third set point with just 30 minutes on the clock.
The unseeded player made a more positive start to the second set, holding serve with comparative ease before finally showing flashes of the form which saw her beat top seed Aryna Sabalenka on Friday. Double faults were creeping into Gauff's game, and Muchova achieved her first break at the third time of asking with a high backhand volley.
However, Gauff continued to win the baseline duel and reeled off four games in succession to move to the brink of victory. Showing her trademark athleticism to chase down drop shots, the 20-year-old sealed her eighth WTA Tour title when Muchova sent a backhand long.
Gauff is the second U.S. player to win the China Open after Serena Williams was victorious in 2004 and 2013. She now heads to Wuhan for the final WTA 1000 event of the year.