World No. 3 Coco Gauff‘s Round of 16 win against Belinda Bencic came with some added drama.
Midway through the match, Bencic seemed to be frustrated with Gauff’s player box cheering for a winner from the American.
Bencic told Gauff’s box to, quote: “shut up,” stating that they shouldn’t be cheering before her serve.
In response to the Swiss standout taking her time, Gauff was heard on the Tennis Channel broadcast saying:
“There’s nobody in the stadium, it’s been so respectful.”
Bencic quickly clapped back, saying:
“They can cheer after the point.”
Then, after breaking Gauff later in the match, Bencic complained to the chair umpire during a changeover, which was clipped by Christian’s Court.
In it, Bencic can be heard saying:
“When the point is over, it’s no problem, I don’t care. But when I’m going to the line ready to serve they don’t need to cheer.”
Gauff, who was off-screen, said something that didn’t sit well with Bencic, who fired back:
“No one’s talking to you. She’s talking to me okay! Your team is chatting. I’m too old for these mind games okay!”
Gauff went on to win the match 4-6, 7-6(4), 6-2, punching her ticket to the quarterfinal, where she will face off with Eva Lys.
Coco Gauff Explains How She Used the Situation as Motivation
During her post-match press conference in Beijing, Gauff spoke about how she was able to use the situation as motivation.
The American No. 1, who secured a spot in the WTA Finals in Riyadh with the Round of 16 win, was quoted by the New York Times as saying:
“Immediately after that, next game I was frustrated, threw three doubles (faults), but after that I was just like, ‘OK, I don’t want to lose anymore after this point.’
“I was able to just buckle down. I think it was almost good for me in a way. I think I can play sometimes a little bit better when I’m annoyed, more so not with myself but with something else.”
Despite the tense mid-match exchange, Gauff had some kind words for Bencic, saying:
“I obviously have a lot of respect for Belinda. She’s a great player, coming back and playing great tennis as a mom. Yeah, I obviously wish today didn’t happen, but it is what it is.”
Gauff Stands Alongside Elite Company With Bencic Win
Prior to beating Belinda Bencic in the Round of 16, Coco Gauff became the youngest player in 14 years to reach 150 hard-court wins with her Round of 32 win over Leylah Fernandez.
With her win over Bencic, Gauff now becomes the third youngest player to reach 20 career WTA Masters 1000 quarterfinals.
The only two players to accomplish the feat faster were five-time grand slam winners Martina Higgins and Maria Sharapova.
As previously mentioned, she had now booked her spot in the WTA Finals in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, set to take place from Nov. 1 to Nov. 8.
Currently, Gauff sits less than 300 points ahead of No. 4 ranked Amanda Anisimova, and nearly 3,000 points behind No. 2 ranked Iga Swiatek.
With 1000 points up for grabs in Beijing, Gauff will have a chance to put some distance between herself and Anisimova.
Belinda Bencic Snaps at Coco Gauff During Mid-Match Exchange