"Another chance to prove yourself": Coco Gauff keeps WTA Finals title defense alive win dominant Paolini win

The round-robin format at the WTA Finals offers "another chance to prove yourself," if you start your tournament on the wrong foot, says Coco Gauff.

And after an erratic display on serve and off the ground in her opening three-set loss to Jessica Pegula, where she hit 12 double faults and 45 unforced errors, the defending champion did just that on Tuesday with a dominant display against Jasmine Paolini.

"I was just trying to play relaxed," Gauff said after a 6-3, 6-2 win that leveled her record in the Stefanie Graf Group to 1-1, and eliminated Paolini from semifinal contention in the process. "I played a WTA Finals were I lost all three matches [in 2022], so I was determined to not make this a repeat of that. I knew that today's win was important to keep myself in the tournament."

🖥️📲REPLAY: Coco Gauff def. Jasmine Paolini, 2025 WTA Finals RR

Gauff served just three doubles against the Italian in one hour and 19 minutes, and was broken just once. After losing her first three matches to Paolini this season, the American ended it by winning two straight head-to-head meetings: first in Wuhan, and now in Riyadh.

After beating Paolini in China, she won the title. To do the same in Riyadh, her fate won't completely be in her hands.

As a first step, she must wait for the conclusion of the later match between No. 1 seed Aryna Sabalenka and No. 5 seed Jessica Pegula to learn what scenario against Sabalenka can put her into the semifinals.

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The volatility of the format is another thing that makes the WTA Finals unique, and makes the prospect of defending the crown all the more daunting.

Gauff is hoping to become just the fourth woman to win back-to-back year-end titles in the last 25 years.

“I think, A, it’s one of those tournaments you’re not guaranteed a spot in every year,” Gauff explained before the year-end championships began. “Some people win and aren’t able to even qualify. B, the top eight in the world, it’s very hard to I think win this tournament in general, let alone replicate it."