Coco Gauff claimed her 47th hard-court win in WTA-1000 matches with a straight-sets victory over Katie Boulter in the third round at the China Open. (More Tennis News)
The American now has the most wins on the surface before turning 21 and needed just 85 minutes to see off her opponent, prevailing 7-5 6-2 on Sunday.
Gauff looked set to sail through the first set after breaking Boulter’s serve in the sixth game and taking a 5-2 lead, but the Brit fought back to level the score.
Gauff, who served four of her five aces in the opening set, rallied to win the final two games, with Boulter failing to stop her from converting set point on the third time of asking.
Back in her groove, the world number three cruised through the second, which included three love games, to book a meeting with either Naomi Osaka or fellow American Katie Volynets in the next round.
Data Debrief: Out on her own
Gauff's win over Clara Burel in the last round pulled her level with Caroline Wozniacki for the joint-most WTA-1000 match wins on hard court before the age of 21 since the format's introduction in 2009.
But she made light work of pushing herself top of that list as she stormed through, dropping her serve just once in the contest.
Gauff (100) has also become the second player to record 100+ break-point conversions at WTA-1000 events in 2024, along with Iga Swiatek (145), getting four out of a possible seven against Boulter.
