China’s Wang Qiang loses to Coco Gauff to miss out on first clay title in Parma
- US teen wins on surface for first time with straight sets singles victory in Parma followed by doubles win with Caty McNally
- Despite losing, the former world No 12 goes into French Open having turned her 2021 form around at Emilia-Romagna Open
Chinese tennis star Wang Qiang came up empty-handed in her quest for a first clay court title and first tournament win since 2018 in the final of the Parma Challenger on Saturday.
US teenager Coco Gauff – also playing her first clay court final – beat Wang in straight sets 6-1, 6-3 at the Emilia-Romagna Open, in what was the Tianjin native’s fifth career final but first outside China.
The 17-year-old made light work of her 29-year-old counterpart, winning in one hour and 14 minutes, before going on to claim the doubles crown with Caty McNally to make it a clean sweep of the silverware. The No 4 seeds eased past the No 2 seeds Darija Jurak and Andreja Klepac, 6-3, 6-2.
Singles No 3 seed Gauff had already proved too much for sixth seed Wang and continued her improving form on clay. Gauff had reached the semi-finals of the Italian Open last week and dropped only one set in Parma en route to a second WTA singles win.
Gauff told the media that part of her game plan was to stop Wang playing.