BEIJING -- One year ago, Coco Gauff bested Karolina Muchova in the final of the Cincinnati Open final to win the first WTA 1000 title of her career.
Can the 20-year-old American repeat the feat at the China Open on Sunday to win her second WTA 1000 title?
Or will a resurgent Muchova get her revenge by knocking off her third Top 10 player of the week to capture the biggest title of her career?
Here's what you need to know about the penultimate WTA 1000 final of the 2024 Hologic WTA Tour season:
When is the singles final?
The singles and doubles finals will both take place on Sunday, Oct. 6.
Championship Sunday will kick off at 4:30 p.m. with the doubles final, followed by the singles final at 7:00 p.m.
Beijing is on China Standard Time (GMT +8, Eastern Time +12).
What are the points and prize money at stake?
Beijing is the ninth of 10 WTA 1000 tournaments of the season. By making the final, Gauff and Muchova have assured themselves 650 ranking points and $585,000 in prize money.
A win on Monday would give the winner a total take of 1,000 points and $1,100,000.
This duo 🫶@CocoGauff | @carlosalcaraz | #ChinaOpen pic.twitter.com/qKmI1ZP7O2
— wta (@WTA) September 29, 2024
How did Gauff and Muchova get here?
A semifinalist in her tournament debut last year, Gauff has gone one better this year to make her first Hologic WTA Tour final since January.
Ranked No.6 and seeded No.4 in Beijing, Gauff has defeated Clara Burel, Katie Boulter, Naomi Osaka by retirement, Yuliia Starodubtseva, and Paula Badosa in the semifinals. Gauff has come from a set down in her last three matches.
On just the third point of the match 😳@karomuchova7 | #ChinaOpen pic.twitter.com/bK65GGO4CS
— wta (@WTA) October 4, 2024
This time last year, Muchova was sidelined with a wrist injury. She underwent surgery in February and came back at Eastbourne this summer. She is 18-5 since her return matches since her return.
Unseeded in Beijing, Muchova moved into the main draw after World No.1 Iga Swiatek withdrew. Coming off a run to the US Open semifinals last month, Muchova has been clinical in Beijing to make her second career WTA 1000 final. She has lost just one set, defeating Anna Blinkova, Yuan Yue, Jaqueline Cristian, Cristina Bucsa, top seed Aryna Sabalenka, and No.7 Zheng Qinwen in the semifinals. This is the first time the Czech has beaten two Top 10 players in a tournament since her run to the Cincinnati final last summer.
How do they stack up?
Head to Head
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Sunday will be the third career meeting between Gauff and Muchova. Gauff has won all four sets the two have contested, all on hard courts.
Their first meeting came in the 2023 Cincinnati Open final, the first WTA 1000 final for both women. Gauff won 6-3, 6-4 to win her first WTA 1000 title.
Their last meeting came weeks later in the 2023 US Open semifinals. Gauff won 6-4, 7-5 on her way to the title.
What milestones are at stake on Sunday?
Gauff, 20, is into her ninth career final and second at the WTA 1000 level. Last summer, she defeated Muchova in the Cincinnati final to win her sole WTA 1000 title. She is looking to win her eighth career title and second of the season, having successfully defended her Auckland title in January.
Gauff is bidding to become the youngest Beijing champion since Caroline Wozniacki in 2010. She is also trying to become the second American champion, following Serena Williams' title runs in 2004 and 2013.
Muchova, 28, is playing her sixth career final and second at the WTA 1000 level. Beijing is her second final of the season, having finished runner-up to Zheng Qinwen on the clay in Palermo. Muchova is aiming to win her second career title. She won her first at the WTA 250 in Seoul in 2019.
With wins over No.2 Sablenka and No.7 Zheng, Muchova could become the first player in Beijing history to beat three Top 10 players in one tournament.
Ranked No.49 at the start of the tournament, Muchova is the lowest-ranked finalist in the tournament's history. Victory would boost her back inside the Top 25.
What are they saying?
Muchova: "I was trying to build my form from the first matches here. I had great matches. I felt good on the court. I'm just happy I was able to perform well against these big players and put up my game, and that I could see that I can face them, I can beat them. I just have to build up as well the way throughout the ranking and everything. I didn't play for a bit. It's just nice to see that I can compete against them."
Gauff: I'm happy to be in the final. Like I said, I wasn't expecting it. Has this week been like my best tennis? In moments, yeah. I think today I reached some levels where I was playing my best tennis. Obviously that's not the case for the whole match. That's tennis, that's life.
"It would be cool. But it's so far. Everybody thinks the final, you're so close. But you're not. You're so far away.
Gauff: "Karolina, I played her twice, both on hard court. She's a tough opponent. I think she's one of the best players on tour. She just had some unlucky breaks with injuries. But it's good to see her back healthy. That's going to be a tough matchup. She's dangerous."
Muchova: "If I look back, those matches, honestly we played in really tough conditions. It was very hot, very humid. It was very physical. She is such a great athlete. She can run left, right. She's like a moving wall. It's tough to hit some winners and make it shorter. That's for sure a challenge. It's very different here. Very different conditions compared to US Open and Cincinnati. I'll try to take advantage of that."
