Gauff cruises through to third round in Rome

Coco Gauff overcame Magdalena Frech in their second-round clash at the Italian Open, the 20-year-old American triumphing in straight sets.

Gauff, seeded third in the tournament, overcame nine double faults on her way to a 6-3 6-3 victory over her Polish opponent, setting up a meeting with qualifying lucky loser Jaqueline Cristian in the next round.

The reigning US Open champion hit three aces as she continues to tinker with her serve ahead of the second Grand Slam of 2024, the French Open.

“I feel like the other parts of my game are improving in the right direction,” Gauff said following her win. “That’s the part that if I can work through, I think it will set me up for a very good Roland Garros.

“Other than that, I feel like I’m returning well, hitting off the ground well.”

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Naomi Osaka notched the first top 20 win on clay of her career after beating No 20 Marta Kostyuk 6-3 6-2 in the second round on Thursday.

Coming a day after her straight-sets win over France’s Clara Burel, this is the first time Osaka has posted back-to-back wins on clay since 2019.

Elsewhere, current world No 1 Iga Swiatek earned an emphatic 6-0 6-2 win over Bernarda Pera following off the back of her success at the Madrid Open last week.

Former No 1 Angelique Kerber ousted 17th-seeded Veronika Kudermetova 6-3 6-0, while Linda Noskova beat Italy’s Lucrezia Stefanini 6-3 7-6.

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