Coco Gauff needed every ounce of the mental resilience that has defined her rise to the top of women’s tennis to survive a second-round match at Wimbledon on Wednesday, coming back from a 7-4 deficit in the third-set tiebreaker and winning six consecutive points to defeat Solana Sierra 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 and advance.
The match reached its most dangerous moment in the third set when Sierra served at 5-4, two points from winning. Gauff broke back, forcing the tiebreaker, and when the situation looked equally bleak at 7-4 against her inside the deciding format, she produced the performance of the match, not dropping another point and sealing the victory with an ace that sent her to the ground in celebration.
A mindset that made the difference
Gauff credited her return game and her ability to stay positive in the pressure moments for the turnaround, noting that when her opponent was serving for the match she reminded herself of her strengths rather than focusing on the deficit. That approach, shifting attention from the scoreboard to the task directly in front of her, produced the run of six points that decided the match.
The win extended Gauff’s encouraging start to her Wimbledon campaign after she had ended a four-match losing streak on grass in her first-round match. She has never advanced past the fourth round at the All England Club despite winning both the US Open and the French Open in recent years, and reaching the quarterfinals remains an unfulfilled goal at this particular major.
She recalled the moment that established her at Wimbledon seven years ago, reaching the fourth round as a 15-year-old in her breakthrough major tournament appearance. Walking through the same corridors on Wednesday brought that memory back, and she used it as a reminder of what she has proven she can accomplish, and what she now believes she can exceed.
Krejcikova beats French Open champion in remarkable centre court match
The day’s most dramatic result came on Centre Court, where former Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova survived six match points before finally eliminating French Open champion Mirra Andreeva 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 in the second round.
Krejcikova served for the match at 5-3 in the final set but Andreeva saved all six match points in a marathon game that kept the Russian teenager alive. She was ultimately undone by an error on her own seventh match point that gave Krejcikova a winner off the net cord, a fortunate conclusion to an exhausting exchange. Andreeva reacted with visible frustration, throwing her racket before leaving the court.
Krejcikova, who won at Wimbledon in 2024, described the match simply as the kind of contest that defies easy summary.
Sabalenka advances in her own tense finish
World number one Aryna Sabalenka was also tested before reaching the third round, eventually defeating her opponent 6-1, 7-6 in a tiebreaker that required her to save two set points before converting her third match point.
Sabalenka will face a former major champion in the next round, setting up what should be a demanding third-round contest. She acknowledged being satisfied to have passed a test that proved more difficult than the opening set suggested it would be.
Naomi Osaka continued her run with a comfortable 6-3, 6-2 victory, accompanied as she has been throughout the tournament by considerable attention to her pre-match walk-on attire. Her outfit for Wednesday’s match featured a wide belt and trailing train, drawing photographers and fans before she removed it and began warming up.
