Coco Gauff advances to third round at Indian Wells

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No. 16 seed Coco Gauff bounced fellow American Claire Liu 6-1, 7-6(4) Friday night in Indian Wells, advancing to the tournament’s third round.

Gauff bested Liu in just over two hours, dropping only two break points throughout their two-set battle. After sprinting out to a commanding opening-set lead, Gauff held off a surging Lui to close out a tight second set.

Friday night’s victory sets up a thrilling third-round matchup against No. 24 Simona Halep, who pulled out a three-set win over Ekaterina Alexandrova in the second round. Halep won the only previous meeting between her and Gauff, defeating the American teen in 2019’s Wimbledon.

Gauff and Halep will face off in Indian Wells on Sunday.