Tennis News: Cori Gauff advanced to her third final of the 2026 season after picking up a 6-4, 6-1 victory over Sara Bejlek in the semifinals of the WTA level 1000 tournament, the Cincinnati Open.
The home favorite took 1 hour 16 minutes to overcome Czech Bejlek in their first meeting.
“I just try to stay focused. Sometimes we are confused about whether to play aggressively and risk making mistakes. I just try to stay focused on every ball,” said Gauff, who is now advancing to the final of her third WTA 1000 level tournament this season.
After quickly leading 4-1, the fourth seed was chased by 20-year-old Bejlek until the score was level at 4-4 in the opening set, as the Czech national sought a sixth consecutive win over top opponents at the Cincinnati Open.
However, Bejlek failed to recapture the scintillating form that previously saw her topple three former Grand Slam champions — Barbora Krejcikova, Aryna Sabalenka and Madison Keys — en route to the semifinals of the first WTA 1000-level tournament of her career.
In the end, the 2025 French Open champion managed to pull away and win eight of the last nine games to ensure victory, to advance to the Cincinnati Open final against her friend and compatriot, Jessica Pegula and become the eighth female tennis player since the 2004 season to reach the final in Cincinnati more than once.
Thanks to this victory, the home tennis player is now 19-2 from the last 21 matches he has played against left-handers.
The final between the fourth seed and third seed Pegula will be the second final between two host players in the history of the tournament in Cincinnati, after Rosie Casals and Nancy Richey in the 1970 season.
In addition, the fourth seed has now reached the eighth WTA 1000 level tournament final in her career, only Serena Williams (18) and Pegula (9) have played more finals at that level since the 2009 season.
The home tennis player will attempt to become the third player since the 2004 season to win the Cincinnati Open at least twice — following Serena Williams (2014, 2015) and Victoria Azarenka (2013, 2020) — when she faces Pegula in the final. He has beaten the third seed four times in their previous nine meetings.
“Winning the title would be amazing, because I’ve reached the semifinals and finals several times this season. I don’t burden myself too much with that. I feel very confident in my game. It’s just another challenge for me to get better,” said Gauff.
Article Tags: jessica pegula, cincinnati open, cori gauff, sara bejlek
Published by Ligaolahraga.com at https://www.ligaolahraga.com/tenis/cori-gauff-buyarkan-mpi-sara-bejlek-di-cincinnati