Vekic eliminates U.S. flag bearer Gauff in 3rd round of women's singles

PARIS (AP) — Coco Gauff was left in tears after getting into an extended argument with the chair umpire over a ruling during the reigning U.S. Open champion's 7-6 (7), 6-2 loss to Donna Vekic of Croatia in a Paris Olympics third-round singles match Tuesday.

Gauff, a 20-year-old American, already was trailing by a lot when the episode happened two games from the end of the match.

Gauff hit a serve and Vekic's return landed near the baseline. A line judge initially called Vekic's shot out; Gauff did not keep the ball in play. Chair umpire Jaume Campistol thought Vekic's shot landed in and awarded her the point, giving her a service break and a 4-2 lead.

Gauff walked over to talk to the official and play was delayed for several minutes.

"I never argue these calls. But he called it out before I hit the ball," Gauff said to Campistol. “It’s not even a perception; it's the rules. I always have to advocate for myself.”

Gauff, a 20-year-old from Florida, was seeded second in Paris and easily won her first two singles matches, dropping a total of just five games.

But her first Olympic singles tournament — she is still in women's doubles and mixed doubles — ended with a performance that was hardly her best on the hottest day of the Summer Games so far, with the heat rising above 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius).

Even before the trouble over the umpiring decision, Gauff could not sustain a good start against Vekic, who was a semifinalist at Wimbledon this month.

The American led 4-1 and was a point from moving ahead 5-1 and serving for the opening set. But she couldn’t close the deal, then wasted a couple of set points at 6-4 in the ensuing tiebreaker. Vekic surged to the end of that set, then maintained her level in the second.

One measure of Vekic’s superiority on this afternoon: She finished with 33 winners to just nine for Gauff.

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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games