"All heart": Coco Gauff finds a way in Rome semifinal marathon against Zheng Qinwen

After a grueling three hours and 33 minutes on Thursday evening, Coco Gauff finally let out a roar of celebration and then pointed toward her head. The 21-year-old just took down Zheng Qinwen in three tightly contested sets, 7-6 (3), 4-6, 7-6 (4) to move into the final at the Internazionali BNL d’Italia for the first time.

Going into their third career meeting, No. 4 seed Gauff said she expected a “physical match” from the Olympic champion. But it turned out to be just as much of a mental test as well, in what ended up being the longest match of the 2025 WTA season—and the longest of Gauff’s career, too.

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“I was just trying to go for every point. I knew before it was going to be a physical match. The last time we played was over three hours,” Gauff explained, referring to their three-set battle at the WTA Finals in Riyadh. In that championship match, Zheng led by a break twice in the decisive set before the American dug deep and came all the way back for a 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (2) victory.

In Rome, the pair went the distance once again. They traded breaks of serve three times in the third set before Gauff pulled away in the tiebreak, and improved to 3-0 in their head-to-head.

“Overall I'm just happy,” Gauff continued. “It wasn't my best level at all, to be honest. Just happy to get through it and through to another final.”

With the victory, Gauff added her name to an elite shortlist as she became the first American since Serena Williams and Madison Keys to reach the final in Rome. That year, the former world No. 1 edged past Keys to claim her fourth and final title in the Eternal City.

To secure her first, Gauff will face a dual challenge against home favorite Jasmine Paolini in the final. The sixth seeded Italian is aiming to become the first home grown champion to win in Rome since Raffaella Reggi in 1985—and she’s set to have a vocal majority of fans at Foro Italico willing her on.

For Gauff, victory would also taste like revenge: Though she leads their head-to-head 2-1, Paolini won their most recent meeting—and the only on clay courts—last month in Stuttgart, 6-4, 6-3.

“She's a tough opponent. I think especially here with the home crowd behind her, she's going to be playing some great tennis. I have to expect that,” Gauff said of Paolini. “Hopefully I can bring a better level and hopefully win the title.

“If not, I'm proud just really of this match, too."