For the second year in a row, Gauff marches into the Rome final

For the second year in a row, Coco Gauff is back in the final of the Internazionali BNL d’Italia. But after three consecutive matches in which the 22-year-old American rallied from a set down to win, Gauff had a smoother passage into the final, defeating Romanian veteran Sorana Cirstea in straight sets Thursday in Rome.

Cirstea, playing in the fourth WTA 1000 semifinal of her career, got off to a quick start by breaking Gauff in the opening game to lead 2-0. But from 4-2 down, Gauff won four straight games to take the first set 6-4.

The second set remained close, with Gauff breaking in the second and sixth games only for Cirstea to break back each time. The American earned the decisive break in the eighth game and then held serve to complete the 6-4, 6-3 victory in 1 hour, 15 minutes.

Here are some key takeaways from Thursday’s result:

Maintains perfect record against Cirstea

Gauff has now won all four career meetings against Cirstea, including three this season. She also beat the Romanian in Miami and Madrid, but this was her first straight-sets win over her.

Into her 16th WTA final

Gauff advanced to the 16th final of her career on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz and her sixth on clay. Known as a strong big-match player, each of her last eight finals has come at either a Grand Slam, the season-ending WTA Finals or a WTA 1000 event.

Extends streak after winning first set

Gauff has now won 28 consecutive matches after taking the opening set. Her last loss after winning the first set came against Jasmine Paolini in the quarterfinals at Cincinnati last year.

Youngest American to reach consecutive Rome finals in 17 years

With Thursday’s win, Gauff became the youngest American since Venus Williams in 1998-99 to reach consecutive Italian Open finals. She is also the first player to reach back-to-back Rome finals since Iga Swiatek in 2021-22.

Swiatek or Svitolina awaits in final

Whoever she faces in the final - Iga Swiatek or Elina Svitolina - will be a familiar opponent. Gauff has faced Swiatek 16 times and holds a 5-11 record in their head-to-head meetings, while she is 2-3 against Svitolina in five meetings. Gauff has won her last four matches against Swiatek, but Svitolina has won the two most recent meetings between the pair, both in 2026.