Gauff crushes Swiatek to book her place in Madrid Open final

Iga Swiatek's Madrid Open title defence came to a crushing end after she was beaten in straight sets by Coco Gauff after just 64 minutes in Thursday's semi-final.

Gauff emerged a 6-1 6-1 victor in the Spanish capital, with the world number four sealing a spot in her first final on clay since 2022.

The American lost the opening game of the match, but went on to win the next six in a row to seal the first set in double quick time.

Gauff then repeated the trick in the second, confirming her victory with an ace, rounding off a stunning love service game that closed out the contest.

"The mentality I had the whole match, I was aggressive, played with margin. Maybe it wasn't her best level, but I think I forced her into some awkward positions," Gauff said.

"At any moment, she can come back and play great tennis, so for me, it was making sure my level stayed the same, and actually raising it in the second set.

"I'm having a great time in Madrid, happy to be back on this court and to be through to my first final here."

Gauff will face either Aryna Sabalenka or Elina Svitolina in the final.

what. a. performance. @CocoGauff stuns the defending champ Swiatek, 6-1, 6-1 to reach the FINAL in Madrid! #MMOPEN pic.twitter.com/3OFtNSoeRu
— wta (@WTA) May 1, 2025

Data Debrief: Gauff puts Swiatek misery on clay behind her

Heading into her latest clash with Swiatek, Gauff had lost all five of their meetings on clay, but she finally got one over the Pole with a stunning display.

Conceding only two games en route to victory, she is only the second player to concede fewer than five games to Swiatek in a WTA-level match on clay, after Simona Halep (one game, Roland Garros 2019).

Since the format's inception in 2009, Gauff (21 years and 39 days) is also now the third-youngest player to reach WTA-1000 finals on both clay and hard court, after Caroline Wozniacki and Thursday's opponent, Swiatek.