Coco Gauff vomits mid-match, still advances at the Madrid Open: ‘My luck today just wasn’t good’

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Coco Gauff got sick mid-match on Sunday in Madrid. 

But remarkably, vomiting on the court didn’t slow her down. 

Gauff still beat Romania’s Sorana Cirstea 4-6, 7-5, 6-1 in the third round of the Madrid Open on Sunday. But during the second set, Gauff needed to take a medical timeout and sprinted off to the side of the court to throw up. She was checked by medical staff on the sidelines, too, before entering the match again. 

“I don’t know how I got it done,” Gauff said after her match, via Sky Sports. “Just dealing with a lot of like, trying to keep my food down. But once I threw up, and I was able to throw up after the first set and then throw up again, I felt a little better.”

Gauff is just the latest star to get sick so far in Madrid. Iga Swiatek withdrew from the tournament on Saturday in the middle of her third round match with Ann Li, and said that a stomach virus was going through the field. 

“It was just a tough match. I think I got the Madrid stomach virus that’s going around,” she said. “I’m usually someone who doesn’t get sick, so, I don’t know. My luck today just wasn’t good.”

Gauff is set to take on Linda Noskova in the fourth round next on Monday. Gauff, who is currently ranked No. 3 in the world, reached the quarterfinals at the Australian Open earlier this season. She made it to the final at the Miami Open last month, too, but ended up falling to Aryna Sabalenka.