Jasmine Paolini becomes first Italian in 40 years to win Rome singles title with Coco Gauff dismissal

Forza! Jasmine Paolini has become the first Italian woman in 40 years to win the Internazionali BNL d’Italia.

On Saturday evening in Rome and with Italian president Sergio Mattarella in the stands, the home favorite completed her magical run at the Foro Italico by getting the better of Coco Gauff for the second time during this spring’s European clay-court swing (Stuttgart). Paolini finished off the American, 6-4, 6-2, to claim the all-Top 5 meeting in 89 minutes.

“I was trying to focus on the match and trying to repeat to myself, ‘no matter what, you have to stay there every ball.’ At the beginning, I was feeling great. It was the best match I played here,” Paolini told Tennis Channel’s Prakash Amritraj.

“I knew that with Coco, I have to raise the level a bit from the last matches. She’s coming from another final.”

Beyond the significance of winning her nation’s biggest tournament, Paolini has cemented a remarkable rankings shift going into Roland Garros. As a result of her victory, the two-time Grand Slam finalist jumps to No. 4—pushing three-time defending champion Iga Swiatek down to No. 5 in Monday’s rankings. That means the Pole and world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka could potentially meet in the quarterfinals at the Paris major.

Inside the Foro Italico, the returner won the first three games before Paolini ended the streak. The home favorite established a better rhythm from the baseline, working the court to find her forehand and moving in to cut angles. From 1-3, the next four games went to deuce—as Gauff kept her deficit to one break while unforced errors also contributed to her inability to get back on serve.

Paolini dazzled to reach three set points with a brilliant display of her comfort at the net that brought the crowd to its feet. She closed it out on the next point in much more efficient fashion.

The set break didn’t do anything to help settle Gauff. She once again dropped serve to start, and a deuce look in the following game finished with back-to-back returns into the net. After a short dip, Paolini immediately regained her double break lead by drilling an inside-in forehand return winner at 0-40 for 4-1.

With Gauff serving to stay in the final, the packed stadium sang for Paolini. Two games later, she joined Raffaella Reggi as the second Italian singles champion in tournament history. Her time at the event isn't over, as she and Sara Errani bid to defend their doubles crown come Sunday.