Iga Swiatek beats Coco Gauff in Cancun group stage

Polish second seed Iga Swiatek moved closer to securing a spot in the WTA Finals semi-finals following a dominant performance against US Open champion Coco Gauff.

The 22-year-old four-time major champion, Swiatek, has emerged victorious in both of her group matches, triumphing with a score of 6-0, 7-5 in windy Cancun.

Gauff, aged 19, had an opportunity to take the second set when she served at 5-4, but her four consecutive double faults allowed Swiatek to break back.

Despite Gauff’s efforts, Swiatek secured the win, with Gauff only managing to claim one additional point.

“Coco is a resilient player, so I knew it wouldn’t be easy,” said Swiatek, who is determined to regain her world number one ranking from Aryna Sabalenka during the season-ending event.

“The key is to stay focused on yourself. The conditions towards the end were challenging, but I was pleased that I managed to overcome them,” she added.

“The wind was unpredictable and swirling. It was uneasy, but there’s no need to dwell on it. You just have to adapt.”

The weather conditions were also expected to be a factor in the match between Tunisia’s Jabeur and seventh seed Vondrousova later on Wednesday, with the latter having previously defeated Jabeur in the Wimbledon final earlier this year.

In Tuesday’s group match, American Jessica Pegula defeated top seed Sabalenka, becoming the first player to secure a spot in the semi-finals.

In another match, Belarus’ Sabalenka will face Kazakhstan’s Elena Rybakina on Thursday to determine the second qualifier from their group.

The Finals have been overshadowed by players’ criticism of the court conditions at the venue, where the surface was completed just days before the tournament started on Sunday.