Source : ABC NEWS
Jasmine Paolini has defeated world number three Coco Gauff 6-4, 6-2 in the Italian Open final.
Roared on by an adoring home crowd, sixth-seeded Paolini became the first Italian to win the women’s title in Rome since Raffaella Reggi in 1985.
“Congrats for the amazing week Coco. You reached finals so you’re playing great. You are such a great player and a great person,” Paolini said.
Gauff had won two of her previous three meetings with Paolini but the 2023 US Open champion had no answers to the Italian’s solid play.
World number five Paolini came out all guns blazing to clinch a tight opening set in 54 minutes and then stepped up a gear to power ahead 3-0 in the next before sealing the win.
Gauff, who lost to world number one Aryna Sabalenka in the Madrid Open final earlier this month, racked up 55 unforced errors, while a dominant Paolini won 76 per cent of her first serves.
But Gauff still has positives to take away from Rome.
She knocked out China’s Paris Olympic gold medallist Zheng Qinwen, Russian teenage sensation Mirra Andreeva and former US Open champion Emma Raducanu on course to the final.
Italy could be celebrating a second victory in the singles, with world number one Jannik Sinner — contesting his first tournament since returning from a doping ban — to face Carlos Alcaraz in the men’s final.
Reuters/ABC
