Top seed Barty to meet Gauff in Italian Open quarters
Last updated on: 13 May,2021 05:07 pm
Top seed Barty to meet Gauff in Italian Open quarters
ROME (AFP) - World number one Ashleigh Barty eased into the quarter-finals of the Italian Open on Thursday with a straight sets win over Russian Veronika Kudermetova.
The top-seeded Australian won through 6-3, 6-3 to set up a clash with US teenager Coco Gauff who earlier ousted Madrid winner Aryna Sabalenka.
Barty, 25, lost to Sabalenka in last weekend s Madrid final and is warming-up for the French Open which she won in 2019.
Belarus Sabalenka, the world number four and seventh seed, fell 7-5, 6-3 to the 17-year-old Gauff, ranked 35, who reached her fourth quarter-final of the year.
"It will be great to see where my level is," said Gauff of playing Barty.
"I mean, she s the No. 1 player in the world. I have no pressure on me.
"I m just going to go out there and see what I can do and try my best."
Six of the WTA s top ten players have already exited the Foro Italico including second-seed Naomi Osaka of Japan, four-time Rome winner Serena Williams, Sofia Kenin and Petra Kvitova.
Defending champion Simona Halep, the third seed, was forced out with a calf injury in her second round match.
"Hopefully I can continue that momentum into Paris," continued Gauff of her bid to reach her second semi-final this year after Adelaide as she builds to the French Open.
"Obviously I want to keep going and keep going further. I m not going to be satisfied until I reach my goal," added Gauff who won her first WTA singles title at the 2019 Linz Open.
"Especially during that time people were saying, It s a fluke, it will never happen again.
"I think I ve proved all those people wrong. I m going to continue to prove them wrong."