Playing against Paula Badosa in the second round of a Grand Slam is a tough draw for anyone, but particularly so for Coco Gauff. Even though the American has been in great form, she was understandably cautious against the Spaniard during the second-round match at the US Open, as Badosa had a 5-3 head-to-head record coming into the match. Having won a tough two-hour contest, Gauff did not fail to give her opponent due credit.

“Um, honestly, just trying to stay aggressive. Um, yeah, Paula’s a tough player. I feel like, you know, had the lead, but I don’t think there was a too much I did wrong. She really stepped it up and, um, yeah, I feel like I’m really happy to be through today. I, you know, I saw the draw. She is definitely not someone you want to pull second round, number two in the world. Um, great competitor, but I think that I need matches like this to build my confidence and I’m happy with how I managed today cuz uh there was a little bit of nerves,” said Gauff during her on-court interview.

“Well, I knew she would raise her level. We played each other enough times for me to know that regardless of the score, she’s capable of blasting winners and blasting return winners. And um so honestly, it wasn’t a big surprise. I think it was just more about how I was able to handle.”

Gauff’s chances to win were in jeopardy in her very first service game, as Badosa had break points to take an early 2-0 lead in the set. However, the home favorite was able to save the break points and hold serve till 3-3 in the set. Gauff made her move in the seventh game, getting the crucial service break, and holding in her next two service games to win the set.

The momentum was all with the fourth seed, who got an early break in the second set as well, leading 4-2. However, if anyone had watched Badosa’s previous matches against Gauff, they would know the Spaniard would not go down fighting. She broke back to make it 4-4, and at 5-4, looked poised to break Gauff’s serve to win the second set. The American, however, thwarted her off to make it 5-5, and then broke in the next game to take a 6-5 lead.

However, for once, Gauff faltered under pressure, as Badosa hit winners at will to break her back and take the second set into a tiebreak. At 4-4 in the tiebreak, the match was in the balance, which is when Badosa made a costly double fault and a backhand error to hand two match points to Gauff. While the former World No.2 was able to save one, she made an unforced error on her own serve, handing the victory to Gauff.

For Gauff, she knew she had skipped a significant challenge in the form of Badosa, who is not shy from playing her best tennis under the spotlight of a Slam, as she has beaten Gauff at a Major before.

Paula Badosa Had Beaten Coco Gauff at a Grand Slam Before

Gauff had played Badosa at the Australian Open last year, which had ended in a 7-5, 6-4 win for the Spaniard. The overall match was a dominant one for Badosa, who played an aggressive style of tennis, going for winners on both wings, whereas Gauff struggled with her forehand, making 28 unforced errors on that shot during that match last year.

For Badosa, the win against Gauff was emotional, as the Spaniard had been on a comeback trail since 2024, recovering from a chronic back condition that required her to take extreme measures, including playing while receiving cortisone injections. Also, Badosa’s win against Gauff came in the quarterfinals, as she reached her first and only Grand Slam semifinal.

“I’m a bit emotional. Overcoming something like this, the last slam, the quarter-finals were very tough”, said Badosa after winning against Gauff in Melbourne. “I wanted to play my best tennis. I did it. Coco, at the beginning, she was playing insane tennis. I’m super proud of the level I gave.”

Wins against Gauff have often been emotional for Badosa, as the Spaniard was in tears, having beaten the American in their previous meeting on the grass courts in Berlin this year. Despite losing the first set 6-1, the former World No.2 turned around the match to win it 1-6, 6-3, 6-2. Badosa was all emotion, having secured a win against one of the top-ranked players in the world after several injury setbacks.

“You can see I’m very emotional. A year ago, right here, I got injured. Since then, I haven’t been able to play regularly,” said Badosa in her on-court interview. “Today, I found myself again on the court.”

Having beaten Badosa, Gauff will face another Spanish opponent in the next round as she takes on Cristina Bucsa, who has beaten the likes of Sara Bejlek and Himeno Sakatsume to reach the third round.