Gauff defeats Andreeva to reach US Open semi with Rybakina | Tennis News

Coco Gauff saved two match points to defeat reigning French Open champion Mirra Andreeva 2-6, 7-6 , 6-2 in a US Open quarter-final on Wednesday.Fourth-ranked Gauff, a 22-year-old American and two-time Grand Slam winner, advanced to Thursday's semi-finals, where she will face Kazakh star Elena Rybakina.Rybakina will jump to world number one in next week's rankings after beating Chinese qualifier Zheng Qinwen 3-6, 6-1, 6-4.Rybakina has a 1-1 career record against Gauff, winning a semi-final last month in Canada after Gauff won their only other meeting in Canada in 2022.Fifth-ranked Andreeva, a 19-year-old Russian, won her first major title at Roland Garros but was foiled despite owning two match points in the second set tie-breaker.Current world number one Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus and third-ranked American Jessica Pegula will meet in the other semi-final.Gauff won all five prior meetings with Andreeva, including a victory on the way to the 2023 US Open title and another in this year's Rome quarter-finals.Andreeva dominated the opening set, then denied Gauff's first break point chance of the day with a forehand winner and held in the fourth game to 2-2.Gauff broke for a 4-2 edge when Andreeva sent a backhand long but the Russian broke back in the seventh game when Gauff sent a forehand wide.Andreeva netted a forehand volley after two double faults to surrender a break in the eighth game but Gauff, serving for the set in the ninth game, netted a forehand for a fourth consecutive break as they battled into a tie-breaker.Gauff saved two match points in the tie-breaker when Andreeva smacked forehands wide and long, then captured the set when Andreeva sent a forehand long then netted a forehand.In the third set, Gauff broke for a 2-1 lead and seized a 5-2 edge when Andreeva netted a forehand to surrender a break. Gauff then held for the victory.js/rcwThis article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.