LONDON — Coco Gauff came from a break down in the third set and then won the last six points of the tiebreaker to beat Solana Sierra 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (7) on Wednesday to reach the third round at Wimbledon.
Gauff was two points away from losing the match when Sierra served at 5-4 in the third set but won three straight points to break back. In the 10-point tiebreaker, she trailed 7-4 but didn't lose another point, sealing the win with an ace and then screaming out loud with both fists clenched.
“When she had to serve for the match I just reminded myself that I’m a great returner as well,” Gauff said. “I was just trying to be positive and I think that showed.”
Gauff had her breakthrough at Wimbledon in 2019 when she reached the fourth round as a 15-year-old, beating Venus Williams in the first round. But while she has won both the U.S. Open and the French Open since then, she has yet to make the quarterfinals at the All England Club despite two more trips to the fourth round.
As it happens, that win over Williams also came on July 1 on No. 1 Court.
“It was kind of my breakout moment, and playing against one of my idols was insane,” Gauff said. “Every time I walk down this hallway I get deja vu and I just remind myself, like, if I could do that (seven) years ago, I'm definitely a better player since then. So I definitely can do it now.”
Sierra was hoping to make another splash at Wimbledon, too. Last year, she became the first so-called lucky loser in the Open Era to reach the fourth round of the women's tournament at the All England Club.
Naomi Osaka did make another another splash by showing off a new look again before winning her second-round match earlier Wednesday.
Osaka, whose fashion reveals have become an event of their own at Grand Slam tournaments, wore a less elaborate outfit for her walk-on than the "Kill Bill" inspired kimono she sported for her opening-round match on Monday.
It still drew plenty of attention as she made the walk from the locker room to No. 2 Court, trailed by photographers and fans wanting to take their own photos.
This all-white outfit featured a wide belt and a long train that trailed behind her, which the four-time major winner took off as she began warming up for her match against qualifier Anastasia Gasanova.
She went on to quickly dispatch Gasanova 6-3, 6-2.
“I'm just trying to mix it up a little bit,” Osaka said about her outfit, adding she had been worried that a loss might have ruined her daughter Shai's third birthday on Thursday.
“I just wanted to be here for longer, I didn't want to make her get on a plane on her birthday,” Osaka said.
Top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka soon followed her into the third round, beating McCartney Kessler 6-1, 7-6 (9) on No. 1 Court.
Sabalenka converted her third match point in the tiebreaker after saving two set points.
“She really tested me today and I'm super happy to have passed the test,” said Sabalenka, who will next play Jelena Ostapenko.
Men's No. 1 and defending champion Jannik Sinner, who came from a set down twice to win in five sets in the first round, had a more comfortable victory Wednesday. Sinner beat Nuno Borges 7-6 (4), 7-6 (2), 6-4 in the first match on Centre Court.
It wasn't entirely straightforward for the Italian, though, as he had to break back for 5-5 when Borges served for the second set, before winning in just over 2 1/2 hours.
“Second set was very, very tough,” Sinner said.
Other winners included French Open runner-up Flavio Cobolli, No. 17 Frances Tiafoe and No. 21 Tommy Paul.
Next up on Centre Court was women's French Open winner Mirra Andreeva facing 2024 Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova before Novak Djokovic takes on Stefanos Tsitsipas.
On Tuesday, Serena Williams returned to Centre Court but lost in three sets to Maya Joint in her first singles match in nearly four years. Williams, who tweaked her knee in the match, still hopes to play doubles with sister Venus later in the week.
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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis