Miami, March 22 Coco Gauff staged a comeback to defeat her fellow American Alycia Parks in three sets to advance to the Miami Open round of 16.
Despite early struggles, Gauff dominated the match and saved numerous break points. This marks her fourth appearance in the last 16 in Miami, as the 22-year-old continues to pursue her first quarterfinal at the WTA 1000 event.
Gauff opened with an early break to take a 2-0 lead, but Parks responded by winning six straight games to claim the first set 6-2. From there, Gauff dominated, winning 12 of the next 13 games to secure a 2-6, 6-0, 6-1 victory in 1 hour, 50 minutes, according to WTA reports.
"It was really difficult. She was playing really well, and she's one of those players who can be inconsistent. So, you're stuck in this fine line of being aggressive but also trying to make her play. And I think I got too caught up on that. And then in the second and third sets, I just tried to be aggressive when I could. I made some adjustments on my return, and I think that made a difference," Gauff said after her win.
This was the American's 11th win at the WTA level, after losing the first set since the start of the 2025 season, tying with Madison Keys and Anastasia Potapova on this statistic. The only player with more wins from a set down in the same span is Jessica Pegula (13). Moreover, among players born since 2000, Gauff's 104 wins at WTA 1000 events rank second behind Iga Swiatek's 130 wins.
She will now face Sorana Cirstea in the next round, aiming for her first quarterfinal at the WTA 1000 event.
The Romanian veteran Cirstea, playing her final season on tour, defeated the 21st seed Elise Mertens 6-3, 6-2. Gauff won their only previous meeting, a three-set match in the second round of the 2022 Australian Open.