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Gauff 'erases' serving wobbles in winning Melbourne start / Photo: DAVID GRAY - AFP
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Gauff 'erases' serving wobbles in winning Melbourne start
Third seed Coco Gauff said she had to "erase" her early serving wobbles as she began her Australian Open title bid with a straight-sets win on Monday.
The 21-year-old eased past Russia-born Kamilla Rakhimova of Uzbekistan 6-2, 6-3 on a hot and sunny Rod Laver Arena.
The American plays Venus Williams' conqueror Olga Danilovic of Serbia in round two.
"I tried not to put too much pressure on myself," Gauff said.
"I want to win this tournament. I am only satisfied if I win, but I am proud of myself regardless of how I get on."
The two-time major winner admitted that her return of serve had been a potent weapon against the world number 93.
"It's the great thing of being a good returner, you have a good chance of breaking in every game," she said.
Gauff, whose best performance in Melbourne was a semi-final in 2024, showed glimpses of frustration as she coughed up six double faults in the first set and made 19 unforced errors.
She racked up three double faults in her first service game, although she dug herself out of the hole to hold.
"Once I got through that game it was pretty much smooth sailing from there," said Gauff, who has consistently struggled with her serve.
"I think I just erased that first game, and then after that I was better."
Gauff belatedly found her groove, sending down an ace to seal the first set in style.
She appeared to have found some consistency in the second set and cut down on the number of mistakes.
But Gauff erred again when serving for the match at 5-2, allowing Rakhimova to claw back a break.
Gauff reset and immediately broke back to complete victory in one hour and 39 minutes.
Q.Vogel--BlnAP
