Coco Gauff is still just 18 years old, yet she is competing in the main draw of the Australian Open for the fourth time. She has already been around the world countless times, she has overcome difficult moments and put hard lessons into action. Despite being a year and a half younger than Emma Raducanu, her opponent on Wednesday night, as a professional tennis player she has already seen so much more.
In a slow-burning contest that saw the intensity and quality peak in the second set, Gauff’s experience came to the fore in the important moments as she saved two set points in a tight second set before edging out Raducanu 6-3, 7-6 (4) to reach the third round of the Australian Open.
