Jasmine Paolini got her revenge for the 2024 Wimbledon final loss in some style after destroying Barbora Krejcikova 6-1 6-2 in just over an hour of play to reach the Cincinnati Open quarterfinal.
Playing against the Czech for the first time since suffering a three-set defeat in last year's title match at The Championships. the seventh-seeded Italian made a statement early on after claiming two breaks and not facing a single break to dominantly take the opener.
Paolini continued her dominance at the start of the second set, registering back-to-back breaks to go 4-0 up. While Krejcikova managed to end the Italian's six-game run by serving out the fifth game of the second set, it didn't change much since the No. 7 seed routinely held on to her serve for the remainder of the match to get the job done in two sets.
It is worth mentioning that Krejcikova called a medical timeout for a left foot issue while down by a set and two breaks.
Paolini set for a Coco Gauff showdown in Cincinnati
For a place in the Cincinnati semifinal, Paolini will take on Gauff for the fifth time in her career - the head-to-head between them stands at 2-2. The American won their first two meetings, while the Italian triumphed in their last two, including this year's Rome Open final when she earned a 6-4 6-2 win.
Today, Gauff ousted Lucia Bronzetti 6-2 6-4 to safely reach the Cincinnati quarterfinal. So far, the American has yet to drop a set in front of her home fans at the American WTA 1000 tournament.
It remains to be seen if Paolini can earn her third consecutive win over Gauff and make her first Cincinnati semifinal.
