Coco Gauff defeats Madison Keys in Dubai, looks to end winless series with Iga Swiatek

Can Coco Gauff challenge Iga Swiatek with a new game plan? We’ll find out Friday in Dubai.

In an all-American showdown, Gauff defeated an erratic Madison Keys, 6-2, 7-5, to reach her second semifinal of the season.

Keys struggled to find the court from the beginning, with 22 unforced errors accounting for 27 of the points Gauff won in the first set. The 27-year-old dropped her opening service game after pushing a backhand long and fell behind by a double break when she shanked an overhead.

Another miss off a routine shot from Keys enabled her countrywoman to move ahead 2-1 in the second set, but she wiped it away with a terrific backhand return that Gauff couldn’t handle to break right back. Two points from finding herself in a decider, the No. 5 seed kept her cool with two aggressive points in leveling for 5-5.

A sloppy game from Keys saw her hand Gauff a break at love, and the world No. 6 had the victory in hand when Keys struck her 51st unforced error of the day.

Gauff, who opened 2023 with a title run in Auckland, will be a considerable underdog when she meets the world No. 1. Swiatek has only dropped eight games over her last five matches and she’s won all 10 sets against Gauff. Asked what she’s learned from those defeats during her on-court interview, Gauff responded, “That all five times I did something wrong.”

Expanding on the subject in press, the 18-year-old said, "It's going to be a challenge. But, to be honest, I think it's a good matchup just to see where I can maybe improve on. There's no pressure for me. I'm just going to go out there swinging. Whatever happens happens. You just kind of have to go in believing you can win even when the odds seem stacked against you."

Swiatek previously received a walkover into the final four when Karolina Pliskova withdrew with a viral illness.