American wins 6-1, 6-1 to continue domination of rival
Gauff will play Sabalenka or Rybakina in Miami Open final
With her hopes of a monumental result at the Miami Open all but over, Karolina Muchova’s desperation deep in her semi-final match against Coco Gauff brought her into the forecourt. Down 1-6, 0-4, a sweet backhand drop volley from Muchova offered her a chance to put away an easy smash with Gauff stranded at the net.
Muchova, one of the most skilled volleyers in the game, would have won that point against almost any other player, but a bad match up in tennis can cause chaos in the mind. This time, Muchova inexplicably chose to stroke the smash straight in the direction of a surprised Gauff, who reflexively directed her backhand half-volley into the open court for a clean winner. Not long after, Gauff closed out her dominant, composed performance without drama to reach the final of her home tournament for the first time in her career with a 6-1, 6-1 demolition of Muchova.
In terms of recent form, Muchova had arrived in the match with a clear edge over Gauff. The 13th seed won her first WTA 1000 title in Doha last month and an extended run of good health has allowed the injury-prone Czech to put together some of the best results of her career. Gauff, meanwhile, had been dragged to three sets in all four of her previous matches in Miami. Her recent arm injury was just the latest obstacle in what has been a challenging start to the season.
