“It’s a bittersweet feeling. Jasmine played great tennis today. Unfortunately, I felt like I didn’t bring my best, which I knew I needed today,” said Coco Gauff  back in May, after losing the final to Jasmine Paolini back in Rome. It was the 21-year-old’s second-straight loss this season against Paolini. And just when she was expecting to settle the scores in Cincinnati, the Italian earned a hattrick of wins. This week in Wuhan, a fourth consecutive defeat was looming over Gauff against the World No.5. However, the two-time Grand Slam champion came prepared this time.

On Saturday, World No. 3 Gauff finally managed to take revenge after her last three losses against Paolini. And it was a sweet feeling. After all, she has now reached the final of the Wuhan Open for the first time. In an all-important semifinal battle, Gauff bested Paolini in straight sets (6-4, 6-3), while breaking her losing streak against the Italian.

Previously, Gauff was trailing 2-3 in their head-to-head tally, but now the scores are leveled at 3-3. Reacting to this shift, during her post-match interview, Gauff took a playful jab at Paolini. When asked “Jasmine was leading 3-0 in the head to head record. How happy are you to win this high intensity match,” Gauff gave clarity, mentioning that it wasn’t a 3 games to none lead, and that she had won two clashes as well in the past. “Well it’s just 3-0 this year, I think it’s even now, so.”

She added, “I am really happy with how I played today. It was tough, especially playing on the serve, but I did what I needed to do to get through.” With the latest victory, Gauff has earned her best campaign as well in Wuhan.

Last year, Coco Gauff made her event debut while making it to the semis. However, she missed out on the final after losing to World No.1 Aryna Sabalenka. But her fate has changed this season. On Sunday, she will have a big opportunity to write her names in the history books when it comes to the Wuhan Open. Surprisingly, though, the trophy is not her priority.

Coco Gauff is not thinking too much of the Wuhan Open title and here is why

Since her French Open victory back in June, Coco Gauff’s season has faced more downs than ups. The consistency has been missing in most of the campaigns. At Wimbledon, she was knocked out in the first round by Ukraine’s Dayana Yasmtremska. Then in Montreal, teenage star Victoria Mboko bested her in the fourth round.

The Cincinnati Open also proved to be a forgettable experience. Jasmine Paolini ousted her in the quarterfinal. And if all of this wasn’t enough, Gauff also failed to shine during her home slam in New York. Four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka defeated her in the fourth round, crushing crushed Gauff’s hopes of adding one more US Open title to her trophy cabinet.

Now that she has gained a slight momentum in Wuhan, she wants to feel good about her return to form. While the trophy will be something she will fight for, it is not the only goal.

Reflecting on her feelings, she said, “I’ve played (a few) finals this year so I have a lot of experience, but regardless of what happens tomorrow, I’m really happy with the effort that I put in for this tournament.” reported WTA’s website on October 11. With her win on Saturday, Gauff has also become the youngest player (at 21 years and 207 days) to reach the final at both China Open (2024) and Wuhan Open.

In case she lifts her maiden trophy at the WTA 1000 event, it will also boost her confidence ahead of next month’s WTA Finals. The year-end event, set to take place in Riyadh, saw Coco Gauff capturing the top honor last season. In the final, she bested China’s Qinwen Zheng. This time, she will be entering the tournament as a defending champion.