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Defending champion Gauff came through an error-strewn third-round match at the China Open, saying “I did what I needed to do to win” against Fernandez.<\/p>\n
She eventually won a tight encounter in three sets – 6-4 4-6 7-5 – but the problems with her serve that brought the American second seed to tears at the US Open<\/a> resurfaced in Beijing. <\/p>\n The 21-year-old two-time Grand Slam champion served nine double faults and was broken seven times in the match.<\/p>\n Both players struggled with their serve, with 15 breaks in total throughout, including eight in the final set – three on Gauff’s serve and five on Fernandez’s. <\/p>\n Gauff served twice for the match from 5-2 up, only to be broken on both occasions by the Canadian world number 25, but she gathered herself at 5-5 to break straight back and finally served out the match, sealing victory on her second match point.<\/p>\n “It was very physical, we were going back and forth,” Gauff said in her on-court interview.<\/p>\n “Obviously the third set I was playing pretty well. I know I could have served a little bit better, but I did what I needed to do to win today.”<\/p>\n Meanwhile, top seed Jannik Sinner will play unseeded Hungarian Fabian Marozsan in the quarter-finals of the men’s event in Beijing on Monday.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n