PARIS, June 4 – On a chilly afternoon at Roland-Garros, Coco Gauff fought through an error-strewn battle to book her place in the French Open semi-finals, outlasting fellow American Madison Keys 6-7(6), 6-4, 6-1 in a match marked more by chaos than craft.
The contest was hardly a showcase of clean hitting. Both players racked up a staggering number of unforced errors—over 100 combined—making for a match that will likely fade quickly from memory for purists and players alike. Despite the messiness, Gauff emerged victorious, surviving 10 double faults and capitalizing on a slew of mistakes from Keys, the reigning Australian Open champion.
More than half of Gauff’s points came courtesy of Keys’ miscues. The 21-year-old Gauff, currently ranked No. 2 in the world, will now prepare for a much tougher test in the semifinals, where she’s set to meet either rising Russian star Mirra Andreeva, seeded sixth, or local hopeful Lois Boisson.
“I’m just happy to have gotten through that,” Gauff admitted in her on-court interview. “I’ve got a lot to work on, but I’ll be ready. I changed something when I was down 4-1 in the first set. It’s tough out there against Madison. She hits flat, fast, low—I was just scrambling to stay in the points.”
For Keys, who was eyeing a second semifinal appearance at the French Open after her 2018 run, the match ended in disappointment. Her 60th unforced error sealed her fate, wrapping up a forgettable afternoon on Court Philippe-Chatrier.
The opening set was as fragmented as it gets. The first three games went against serve, with neither player able to find rhythm. Keys finally held to lead 3-1, and then broke again to widen the gap. But Gauff clawed back into the set, reclaiming a break and holding serve for the first time to pull within 4-3.
What followed was a blur of breaks, with Gauff eventually leveling the set at 4-4 and nudging ahead with a gritty hold. Keys, feeling the pressure, fended off a set point to push the opener into a tiebreak.
The level of play wasn’t exactly inspiring, but the tension was palpable. The tiebreak was wild and uneven—Gauff double-faulted three times, handing Keys the set despite being in position to close it out.
As Gauff herself put it, “So many unforced errors,” summing up the atmosphere in one of the more ironic understatements of the tournament.
Fortunately for Gauff, the second set brought a measure of improvement. She began cleaning up her game, reducing the double faults and extending rallies, forcing Keys into even more errors. Though still far from flawless, Gauff broke Keys late in the set to take it 6-4, leveling the match and swinging momentum in her favor.
By the third set, it was all Gauff. With Keys unraveling, Gauff surged ahead with the confidence of a player who had weathered the worst. She sprinted to a 5-0 lead, dropping just one game before sealing the win. The crowd, which had endured a rollercoaster ride of quality and frustration, finally got to see a glimpse of the Gauff who reached the final here in 2022.
With this win, Gauff also etched her name in the record books once again. She is now the youngest woman to record 25 main-draw victories at Roland-Garros since Martina Hingis dominated the clay between 1995 and 2000.
The win may not have been pretty, but in Grand Slam tennis, survival often trumps style. Gauff lives to fight another day, with a place in the French Open final now just one match away.
