Eastbourne International: Coco Gauff thrashes Jodie Burrage to reach quarter-finals

Eastbourne International: Coco Gauff thrashes Jodie Burrage to reach quarter-finals
_130230273_gauff_getty.jpgCoco Gauff reached the fourth round of Wimbledon when she was just 15 years old

World number seven Coco Gauff thrashed Britain's Jodie Burrage to reach the quarter-finals of the Eastbourne International.

American Gauff proved a step up in class for Burrage as she overpowered her 6-1 6-1 in exactly an hour.

Burrage lost 10 games in a row against the excellent Gauff before breaking the American as she served for the match.

However, Gauff recovered quickly to secure victory and her place in the last 16.

Gauff will face either doubles partner and world number three Jessica Pegula or Colombia's Camila Osorio next.

"Jodie has had a couple of good weeks on grass and hopefully she can have a good time at Wimbledon," Gauff, 19, said on BBC Two.

"Being in a town like Eastbourne where you can walk reminds me of home. It's peaceful and I need that before getting into a Grand Slam."

Burrage, 24, will feature at Wimbledon, which begins on 3 July, after being given a wildcard.

Burrage reached the final of the Nottingham Open at the start of the grass-court season, beating world number 23 Magda Linette and French veteran Alize Cornet on the way.

However, she always faced an uphill task against Gauff, who is 121 places above her in the world rankings and an excellent mover on a grass court.

The American won five games in a row to take the first set, breaking Burrage's serve early with a fine backhand winner and consolidating her lead with a 124mph ace.

Burrage fought hard in the first game of the second set but a missed backhand handed Gauff the break, with the American reeling off another five straight games.

Burrage finally got on the board for 5-1 as Gauff struggled to serve out the match, but the Briton went long with a forehand on match point to hand Gauff victory.

Earlier, Russian ninth seed Daria Kasatkina beat 2021 Wimbledon runner-up Karolina Pliskova 3-6 6-3 6-3 to reach the last 16.

Pliskova, who has struggled for consistency over the past year, was annoyed by a Kasatkina forehand that was not called out at a decisive point in the third set.

She had led by a break in the deciding set but subsequently lost the point and her serve to hand Kasatkina a 4-3 lead.

The Russian then broke serve once again to set up a quarter-final meeting with either French second seed Caroline Garcia or Romanian qualifier Ana Bogdan.

Croatia's Petra Martic advanced after eighth seed Beatriz Haddad Maia retired with illness when trailing 6-4 3-2.

Britain's Harriet Dart will face former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko later on Wednesday.

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