Coco Gauff weathers Ons Jabeur storm to reach French Open semi-finals

Coco Gauff survived an Ons Jabeur onslaught to reach the semi-finals of the French Open.

Third seed Gauff fell a set behind as Jabuer, looking to reach the last four at Roland Garros for the first time, went after the American’s serve from the start and broke for 4-3.

Gauff saved two set points on her own serve but Jabeur finished the job with the ball in her hand, hammering down an ace to clinch it.

Coco in Paris ❤️ pic.twitter.com/ZVYVFPINQ5

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 4, 2024

Jabeur retrieved an early break in the second but Gauff hit straight back when the Tunisian drilled a forehand wide.

The balance of power had shifted when Jabeur, the eighth seed, dunked a forehand into the net to hand Gauff the double break and the second set.

When US Open champion Gauff broke and then held for 4-1 in the decider, Jabeur had won just two of 11 games.

The Tunisian flags on Court Philippe Chatrier fluttered briefly when she managed a solid hold to love and then moved to 0-30 with a spectacular leaping forehand winner.

But the fightback was quickly snuffed out as 20-year-old Gauff, the runner-up in Paris two years ago, registered a 4-6 6-2 6-3 victory in an hour and 57 minutes.

She said: “Ons is a tough opponent and well loved on tour, I can tell you guys wanted her to win, and when I’m watching her I want her to win too.

“I love playing in this atmosphere. I was just thinking, ‘this is really fun, win or lose’. I have a lot of love here in Paris too and I really appreciate it.

“I was trying to be more aggressive, she was playing really well the whole match, hitting a lot of winners. I got a little bit tight but I did what I needed to do to win the match.”

But while Gauff took the scenic route to the last four, defending