Gauff stops Starodubtseva to make second straight Beijing semifinal

BEIJING -- No.4 seed Coco Gauff booked a return to a second consecutive China Open semifinal by coming from a set down to defeat Ukrainian qualifier Yuliia Starodubtseva 2-6, 6-2, 6-2 in the quarterfinals on Thursday. Beijing is the 20-year-old American's third WTA 1000 semifinal of the year and first since Rome. She is the youngest back-to-back semifinalist at the China Open since Maria Sharapova achieved the feat in 2004 and 2005. 

Beijing: Scores | Order of Play | Draws

Gauff will face 15th seed Paula Badosa on Saturday for a spot in her first final since winning Auckland in January and first at the WTA 1000 level since winning Cincinnati last summer. Badosa leads their head-to-head 3-2. Gauff won their only meeting of the season on the clay in Rome.

Gauff entered the week at No.6 on the PIF Race to the WTA Finals and her run in Beijing has bolstered her chances of qualifying for her third straight season-ending championships. 

In their first career meeting, Gauff overcame a slow start to reel in the surging Starodubtseva, who was playing her second WTA quarterfinal in her WTA 1000 debut. Ranked No.115, the 24-year-old graduate of Old Dominion University had yet to lose a set in Beijing until Gauff stormed back in the second set. 

"I was just trying to remember what we've been working on on the practice court," Gauff said. "It's still a lot of things I'm adjusting to, so for me, it's about trusting the process and focusing on that.

"Today, I can't control how I play or how she plays, but I can just try to control my mindset and commit to the process."

Starodubtseva dominated the opening frame from the first game, breaking an error-prone Gauff immediately. Starodubtseva held Gauff to zero winners, while striking 10 of her own. With Gauff struggling to find her the rhythm on her serve and throwing in seven double faults, Starodubtseva maintained consistent return pressure. She generated nine break-point chances and broke three times in the 40-minute set. 

Gauff responded by showing her champion's mettle. She saved two break points in her opening service game of the second set and broke to lead 3-1. After wiping away two more break points to consolidate her advantage, Gauff settled down to lose just 3 games for the rest of the match. 

After forcing the decider, Gauff opened up a 3-0 lead to start the third and never let Starodubtseva put the result into doubt. Gauff did not face a break point in the final set. She lost just four points on serve.

With the win over Starodubtseva, Gauff improved to 12-1 against qualifiers this year. She has also won 24 of her last 25 matches against players outside the Top 100 on the PIF WTA Rankings. 

Starodubtseva, who last month became the first woman in the Open Era to successfully qualify at all four Grand Slams in a single season, will make her Top 100 debut on Monday.