Defending champion Coco Gauff loses in the U.S. Open’s fourth round to Emma Navarro
NEW YORK (AP) — This is pretty much all anyone needs to know about defending champion Coco Gauff’s 6-3, 4-6, 6-3 loss to Emma Navarro in the U.S. Open’s fourth round on Sunday: Gauff wound up with more double-faults, 19, than winners, 14.
“I don’t want to lose matches like this anymore,” Gauff said, attributing her serving problems to a mix of mechanical issues and mental ones.
The No. 3-seeded Gauff had won 10 matches in a row at Flushing Meadows, including the run to her first Grand Slam title a year ago.
Four of those came after she dropped the opening set — including in the 2023 final and in her third-round victory on Friday — but the 20-year-old from Florida could not complete the comeback this time. That’s despite a mid-match, four-game run in which she claimed 14 of 17 points to steal the second set and get off to a good start in the third.