Coco Gauff looked every bit like the women’s No. 2 seed at Wimbledon on Thursday, easily defeating Sonay Kartal in their third-round match, 6-4, 6-0. With the win, Gauff advances to the tournament’s fourth round for the third time after losing to Sofia Kenin in the first round last year.
The British native Kartal had the crowd at the All England Club on her side, which may have given her a lift in the first set as she rallied from 4-2 to a 4-4 tie. But that hardly deterred Gauff as she took the next eight games in a match that lasted just over an hour.
Afterward, Gauff acknowledged that the fans weren’t as much against her as she anticipated.
“This is my first time playing a British player here, so I was a little bit nervous,” Gauff said. “I knew you guys would be for her. Thankfully, you guys were pretty nice to me so that helped. Playing in front of the British crowd is great. You’re respectful, so I appreciate that.”
Kartal came into the third-round match on an impressive run as a qualifier (and ranked No. 298 in the world), defeating No. 29 seed Sorana Cirstea and Clara Burel before facing Gauff.
“She was playing at a high level in the first set. It’s been a great tournament for her,” Gauff added. “She wasn’t giving me much to work with and she does a good job of mixing up variety so you never feel settled. I was missing but eventually I was able to do well.”
Up next for Gauff is a matchup with No. 19 seed and fellow American Emma Navarro in the fourth round.