Rome takeaways: Gauff tops Linette for another Round of 16 spot

Last time out against Magda Linette in Miami, Coco Gauff lost to the Pole for the first time in three career meetings. But the American restored order for herself in the head-to-head with a 7-5, 6-3 win over Linette in the third round of the Internazionali BNL d'Italia on Sunday. 

Rome: Draws | Scores | Order of play

Facing Linette on a surface other than hard courts for the first time, Gauff came through a tight first set and a nervy finish to advance to the fourth round in Rome for the third time in her career. She'll face Emma Raducanu in a match of US Open winners up next, as the 2021 New York champion rallied from a set behind to defeat Veronika Kudermetova in her own third-round match. 

Here are some takeaways from Gauff's Roman revenge:

How the match was won: There was little to separate the two players in the first set, in part because the World No. 4 was unable to get her game going consistently despite taking an early lead. The two players combined for 40 unforced errors in the first set, with Gauff hitting 24 to just nine winners. 

After breaking for 3-1, Gauff handed the advantage straight back to Linette -- and the two players stayed on serve until Gauff's mettle pushed her over the line. She won eight of the last nine points from 5-5 to wrap up the frame in 51 minutes.

Gauff started equally quickly with a 3-1 lead in set two, and though she again handed the initiative immediately back to the No. 32 seed with a break from 40-15, she didn't let the set get too further out of control -- even if the finish was tense. In all, the American needed five match points to seal victory, and she saved a break point in the final game after her first four chances to win slipped away.

Is a deep run in Rome on the cards again? Rome is Gauff's most fruitful Hologic WTA Tour event, with her 14 main-draw wins ranking fourth among her highest win totals at any tournament (and outranked only by Roland Garros, the US Open and the Australian Open). And Rome's third round in particular has been a watershed mark for Gauff in Rome in her career since establishing herself at the top of the Hologic WTA Tour. She's twice reached the semifinals in 2021 and 2024, but lost in the Round of 32 in back-to-back years in between those showings.

By passing the third-round hurdle, is she due for another long stay in the Italian capital? 

She'll take a 1-0 record against Raducanu into their Round of 16 clash after beating her in straight sets in the second round of the 2023 Australian Open.