Karolina Muchova didn't mind telling the truth to everyone when asked if there was something in Coco Gauff's game that was not suiting her as the Czech acknowledged that there probably was and that she played one of her worst Beijing matches on Sunday.
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Yesterday, the 28-year-old was bidding to land her maiden WTA 1000 title. And since she collected a couple of really dominant wins and then also managed to upset Aryna Sabalenka and beat Zheng Qinwen, she had every reason to enter the Beijing final fully confident.
But what was supposed to be Muchova's big day, ended in disaster after Gauff absolutely crushed her with a 6-1 6-3 scoreline. Although the Czech was out for 10 months due to wrist surgery and didn't play again until June, it didn't take her long to rediscover her game and find her groove. But one thing continued - her struggles against the American tennis star.
During the China Open final, the current world No. 8 was broken a total of five times.
"I think it was my I don't want to say worst, but for sure not the best. Yeah, maybe it was actually one of the worst matches that I played here. I think I was playing the other matches pretty solid. I served better. I wasn't doing that many mistakes. Of course, she pushed me and made me do those errors. But yeah, I didn't help myself with the serve. That's my game usually. I keep serve. I wasn't able to do that today. I think was my weakest performance. In that way I meant that I helped her a little bit. But obviously she made it tough and she played really great," Muchova reflected.
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Muchova asked directly if Gauff has something that causes her problems
On the WTA Tour, the Czech is one of the more interesting players to watch considering the variety she possesses in her game. Because of that, the 2023 French Open finalist is one of the best at adapting and playing with different tactics and styles. But against Gauff, whatever she tried, it didn't work.
Last year, Muchova suffered a straight-set defeat to the American in the Cincinnati semifinal. The same outcome happened in their 2023 US Open final meeting. Now, the 20-year-old owns a 3-0 head-to-head record against the Czech and has yet to lose a set in their matchups.
"Probably, yes (smiling). I mean, I lost to her three times in a row. I'll say very similar losses. I lost them all the same way. It was always the latest rounds of the tournaments when I got many matches under the belt. It's very physical with her. I felt like the second one always in the rallies. I guess her game... I don't know. It's tough to say. I felt like I didn't play my best, so it's tough to say. It makes me probably uncomfortable when I lost to her three times in a row," the 28-year-old admitted.
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Muchova happy with the quick progress she has made
After suffering a devastating wrist injury which forced her to delay her WTA Finals debut in 2023, the Czech received more bad news after her recovery didn't go as targeted and she ultimately required surgery. During that period, she had some major fears and concerns.
But since returning, Muchova has managed to stay injury-free and she has already made two finals and was also a semifinalist at the US Open. Also, she has had wins against Sabalenka, Zheng, Jasmine Paolini.
"it's really nice to be getting back there, gaining the confidence, the game, and as well the fitness. It's nothing you can work on outside the court to get these real matches. I need I think as many matches as I can. It's good for me for, as you mentioned, the rest of the season and for next season. I'm just trying to play the ball, play every match I can. For sure it's good to know that I can beat these players, top players. Yeah, it's good," she said.
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At this week's WTA 1000 tournament in Wuhan, Muchova is unseeded so she will again have to start from round one, where she meets Moyuka Uchijima. If the Czech were to win Wuhan, she would need to clinch six victories. And considering that she is coming off seven matches played in Beijing, it is clear that it's not an ideal scenario.
"If I would want to win Wuhan, I would need to play from Tuesday six matches in a row against the best. It's I would say almost impossible. So it's very tough and very challenging. I'll see how it's going to work," Muchova noted.
