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Match Details
Fixture: (3) Coco Gauff vs (LL) Jacqueline Cristian
Date: May 11, 2024
Tournament: Italian Open 2024
Round: Third Round (Round of 32)
Venue: Foro Italico, Rome, Italy
Category: WTA 1000
Surface: Clay
Prize money: $5,509,771
Live telecast: USA - Tennis Channel | UK - Sky Sports | Canada - TSN
Coco Gauff vs Jaqueline Cristian preview
World No. 3 Coco Gauff will lock horns with lucky loser Jaqueline Cristian in the third round of the 2024 Italian Open on Saturday (May 11).
After an opening-round bye, Gauff faced Magdalena Frech in the second round. The American overcame a break deficit and reeled off five games in a row to lead 5-1 in the first set.
Frech put up a fight and stopped Gauff from serving out the set on her first try, though the latter got the job done on her second attempt. The American was in the driver's seat in the second set as well and led by 5-2. She got broken while trying to close out the match but broke back immediately to score a 6-3, 6-3 win.
Cristian, meanwhile, stumbled in the qualifying rounds of the Italian Open but got a direct spot in the second round as a lucky loser after Barbora Krejcikova's withdrawal. She took on Elina Avanesyan for a spot in the third round.
Christian had the upper hand in the first set but lost it after being 5-3 up. She played more decisively in the second set and was able to claim it with ease. After some inital back and forth in the decider, she swept the last five games of the set for a 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 comeback win.
Coco Gauff vs Jaqueline Cristian head-to-head
This will be the first career meeting between them, so the head-to-head stands at 0-0 for now.
Coco Gauff vs Jaqueline Cristian odds
(Odds are sourced from BetMGM)
Coco Gauff vs Jaqueline Cristian prediction
Cristian didn't let her second shot go to waste and fought hard to get past Avanesyan. Even though Gauff won in a routine manner against Frech, she had some struggles of her own.
Gauff's serving woes have made things quite difficult for her these days. She hit a total of 24 double faults across her three matches at the Madrid Open, and nine against Frech in the previous round.
Gauff is able to compensate for it with other aspects of her game but once she runs into a top player, her serve becomes a huge liability. Cristian could give the American some grief on return games, as she broke Avanesyan's serve seven times in the previous round.
Cristian has never beaten a top-10 player before, so she will need to raise her level if she wants to have a shot at victory. As for Gauff, she usually makes it past these early rounds even if she encounters a challenge. The American will be expected to continue her journey at the Italian Open.
Pick: Coco Gauff to win in straight sets.
