Coco Gauff dominates Jessica Pegula to win Cincinnati Open

In 2026, Coco Gauff is giving tennis fans nostalgic feelings of the 2023 “Summer of Coco” when she won the Mubadala DC Open, Cincinnati Open, and US Open.

Gauff defeated her friend and American compatriot Jessica Pegula in straight sets in a little over an hour in Sunday’s Cincinnati Open final.

She is arguably playing the best tennis in a year, or perhaps her career, going into the US Open.

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Everything is clicking for Gauff

What a difference a year makes as Gauff struggled mightily with her serve last year at this tournament.

The result was a shocking coaching change going into last year’s US Open.

The serve is working great, and Gauff’s athleticism has always been on point.

Gauff wins her 12th career WTA singles title. She appeared in two WTA 1000 finals this year, losing the Miami Open to Aryna Sabalenka and the Italian Open to Elina Svitolina. It is her first title this calendar year.

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A weary Pegula

Pegula had a busy week of taking out Top 10 players in her section of the draw including Amanda Anisimova and Iga Swiatek.

She looked fatigued. At times her serve did not have much on it which concerned fans who saw that she called the trainer earlier in the week midmatch for an ab issue.

Pegula insisted the rest and day off before her semifinal match were necessary.

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