TENNIS: Gauff dares to dream after "bit of a breakthrough on grass"

LONDON — Coco Gauff believes she has finally turned a corner on grass after reaching her first Wimbledon semifinal with a comeback victory over fellow American Jessica Pegula on Tuesday.

The world No. 7 rallied from a set down to defeat Pegula, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, on Centre Court, advancing to the Wimbledon semifinals for the first time in her career. Gauff described the milestone as a breakthrough after years of struggling to make deep runs at the All England Club.

Wimbledon had been the only Grand Slam where Gauff had failed to reach at least the quarterfinals. Before this year's tournament, the 2023 US Open champion and 2025 French Open winner had never advanced beyond the fourth round.

Despite being pushed to three sets in four of her matches, Gauff has shown resilience throughout the tournament and said her recent performances have boosted her confidence on grass.

"It feels really special considering the results I've had lately, especially on this surface," Gauff said. "No matter how the rest of this tournament goes, I feel like I've had a breakthrough on grass."

The 22-year-old will next face Karolína Muchová for a place in Saturday's championship match, but she said her goal remains to win the title.

Gauff admitted she would not have expected to reach the semifinals after her recent struggles on grass, including an early exit at the Berlin Open. She also endured first-round exits at Wimbledon in 2023 and 2025 after reaching the fourth round in 2024 and the third round in 2022.

Her memorable breakthrough at Wimbledon first came in 2019, when, as a 15-year-old qualifier, she stunned Venus Williams in the opening round before advancing to the fourth round. She matched that result again in 2021 but had been unable to go further until this year.

After securing match point against Pegula, Gauff turned toward her team and appeared stunned by the achievement, mouthing, "Oh my God, how?"

She credited her improved confidence for helping her overcome long-standing doubts about her game on grass.

"In the past, there was commentary that maybe my game didn't fit this surface," Gauff said. "Now I trust that my groundstrokes are good enough to compete with anyone on grass."

Gauff added that her previous victory over Belinda Bencic helped ease the pressure and settle her nerves heading into the quarterfinals.

A deeply religious person, Gauff also reflected on whether destiny played a role in her run.

"I feel like the story is already written, but I don't know if Wimbledon is part of it," she said. "Seven days ago, I probably would have said no. But I hope it's part of my destiny, whether it's this year or sometime in the future. I'd love to see my name on the champions wall." -Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Pritha Sarkar/Reuters