Coco Gauff gets a win; Victoria Mboko gains confidence: “I felt like I was playing myself”

Coco Gauff won her first meeting with 18-year-old Canadian qualifier Victoria Mboko, 3-6, 6-2, 6-1, in Rome on Friday evening.

The result wasn’t a surprise. Gauff is ranked No. 3; Mboko is No. 156. Gauff, at 21, is a six-year tour veteran with a Grand Slam title to her name. Mboko is a rookie who has spent spent almost all of her time at the ITF level, a step down from the WTA. Granted, she has been tearing up that circuit, winning four titles this season and arriving for this match with a 33-3 record in 2025. But this was the tennis equivalent of a minor-league baseball pitcher getting called up to the big leagues. A win for Mboko on day one was always going to be a long shot; the key was to show that wins may come in the future.

Statistically, the match wasn’t a thing of beauty. There were 13 breaks of serve; Gauff and Mboko didn’t hold in back-to-back service games until the start of the third set. As far as winners and errors went, neither was in plus territory: Gauff was minus four (25 to 29), Mboko was minus 13 (13 to 26). They combined for 14 double faults.

Yet despite her defeat, and despite failing to hold her serve often or even get it in much of the time, the evening has to be considered a promising one for Mboko. She succeeded in the mot important aspect of her job: Standing toe to toe, and holding her own, with Gauff in the rallies.

Amid the errors and double faults, these two engaged in quite a few extended and explosive rallies, and Mboko’s speed and shot-making were largely a match for Gauff’s. The Canadian’s forehand, which she hits fairly flat, with an abbreviated swing, was a point-opening weapon and at times the best shot on the court. Mboko also showed off impressive hands on a few high-skill shots in the forecourt: Twice she flicked a ground stroke over the high part of the net and brought it down into the corner for a winner. Another time she rocketed a swing volley for a blazing inside-out winner that even Gauff couldn’t get near.

The American was impressed.

“I’ve been following her since the Miami Open, and I think she’s a great player,” Gauff said of Mboko. “I knew it going to be a tough match. She’s playing some top-level tennis, so I approached the match that way.”

“I felt like I was playing myself. I think I move pretty well, and she moves very well…As far as the movement, I think she’s up there with me on that.”

If the result wasn’t the most important part of this match for Mboko, it was for Gauff. Her shanks, double faults, and service breaks are a reason for concern, but simply living to fight another day was paramount. Gauff said she struggled with the conditions, which are “so much slower than Madrid,” especially at night, and that it was next to impossible to hit a winner in the early going. But she also said that she could shrug off the mistakes because, “I knew I was playing the right way.”

“I stayed pretty composed,” Gauff said. “Overall, I was happy I was able to step up my game.”

“I’m happy I was was able to reset.”

Next up for her will be Magda Linette. Gauff may not have the luxury of another slow start; Linette won their most recent match, and showed that she can take advantage of a subpar Coco, in Miami in March.