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Simona Halep overcame a second set hiccup to overcome Coco Gauff in straight sets and advance to the quarterfinals of the Madrid Open.
Halep has now won all six sets she's contested against the American teenage sensation, improving her head-to-head to 3-0.
Simona Halep vs Coco Gauff Score
Simona Halep beat Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-4.
Simona Halep vs Coco Gauff Winner
Simona Halep's win over Coco Gauff marked her 30th main-draw match victory in Madrid. The Romanian also got her first claycourt win over Gauff and will face Ons Jabeur in the quarterfinals.
Simona Halep vs Coco Gauff Recap
Halep kept her composure in crucial moments as Gauff stumbled, coughing up 30 unforced errors to help the Romanian's cause.
To make matters worse, Gauff chalked up six double faults as Halep raced to victory.
Halep took control of a tight first set by breaking Gauff in the ninth game as the American served up an untimely double fault. The Romanian did not face a break point in the opener as she held serve to win the first set 6-4.
But it wasn't as easy for the Romanian in the second set as Gauff stepped up her game and broke with a forehand winner to jump to a 2-0 lead. Gauff held her serve at love, capping it with an ace to go 3-0 up in just 12 minutes.
But errors crept into Gauff's game, especially on the backhand wing, that allowed Halep to get a foothold in the set. Gauff nearly gave away her advantage as she double faulted to hand Halep a break point. But the American struck back-to-back aces to maintain her lead at 4-1.
After a comfortable hold by Halep, Gauff raced to a 40-0 lead on her own serve, but threw in three double faults to give Halep the break back.
Halep, seeking her third title in the tournament after winning in 2016 and 2017, displayed steely resolve as she won nine of 10 points to draw level at 4-4.
Four miscues on Gauff's forehand handed Halep another break before the Romanian held serve to take the victory.
