Coco, Wang in Emilia-Romagna Open title clash

American Coco Gauff and China's Wang Qiang reached their maiden clay-court WTA final when they secured hard-fought wins against their respective opponents at the inaugural Emilia-Romagna Open on Friday.

World No. 30 Coco needed three sets to get past Czech Republic's Katerina Siniakova 7-5, 1-6, 6-2 in a high-quality encounter, while Wang, ranked 48th in the world, came from 1-5 down in the second set and saved three set points against American Sloane Stephens for a 6-2, 7-6(3) win.

Wang had previously struggled in 2021, compiling a 4-11 record before this week, but has now reached her first final since the 2018 WTA Elite Trophy in Zhuhai, and her first outside China.