Coco Gauff matches big Maria Sharapova record following latest Cincinnati Open triumph

Coco Gauff is one of the huge young stars in women’s tennis. She just matched something that arguably the biggest young superstar ever, Maria Sharapova, once did.

Coco Gauff may only be 22 years old, but she’s already one of the biggest names in women’s tennis. The American superstar already has a French Open title and a US Open title to her name.

Gauff has been impressing in 2026, too. She is the player with the outright most WTA-1000 semi-finals reached this year, achieving this feat on Friday.

During the quarter-finals of the Cincinnati Open, she comfortably beat Marta Kostyuk in two sets, winning 6-2, 6-2. And in doing so, she put herself in some elite company.

Coco Gauff matches Maria Sharapova’s second-most number of WTA-1000 semi-finals appearances before age 23

After beating Kostyuk, Gauff has booked a spot for herself in the tournament semi-finals, where she is slated to go up against Sara Bejlek.

This will be the 17th WTA-1000 semi-final of her very young career. This means she’s matched Maria Sharapova and is hot on the heels of Martina Hingis.

“Coco Gauff has equalled Maria Sharapova (17) for the second-most Tier I / WTA-1000 semi-finals reached since the format’s introduction in 1990 before turning 23 years old,” OptaAce reported on X.

Naturally, Hingis’ number is not possible for Gauff to reach before she turns 23 early in 2027. However, what she has already achieved is worthy of acknowledgement.

Gauff will be hoping to win it all in Cincinnati before moving on to the US Open. Having last won the major tournament in 2023, she’ll want momentum on her side as she tries to make it happen again.

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