Gauff beats Jovic 6-1, 6-4: 'No regrets' and a nine-match win streak open the World No. 1 hunt at the US Open

On a packed Arthur Ashe Stadium, Coco Gauff was no longer the cautious version who once struggled in Rome. She dispatched Iva Jovic in just 1 hour and 20 minutes, 6-1, 6-4, producing one of her cleanest performances of the season. American fans have waited for this version of Gauff since her first Grand Slam title in 2026: direct, proactive, and seemingly unburdened by the past. Before the match, Gauff owned a nine-match winning streak following her Cincinnati title. She also held a 20-set winning streak, a remarkable statistic on hard courts. Against Jovic, Gauff hit 18 winners and made only 15 unforced errors. The young American could manage just 9 winners while committing 30 unforced errors. That gap not only reflects class, but shows how Gauff forced her opponent into constant defensive positions. The match lasted under 90 minutes, far removed from the marathon struggle in Rome. There, Gauff had to save match point and needed more than three hours to win. She later said that match taught her to be more aggressive, to finish points instead of waiting for mistakes. Her approach on this day was almost perfect. It is no accident that Gauff is playing with a 'no regrets' mentality. All year she has worked with biomechanics expert Gavin MacMillan, who helped reconstruct her service motion after the 2026 season. The refinements were not immediate; MacMillan said the process needed time to sink into muscle memory. Now, the formula appears to be working: Gauff returns earlier, takes fewer extra steps to chase balls, and plays first-strike tennis as a habit. Looking at the first set, Gauff won it 6-1 in 33 minutes, closing with six straight games. The rhythm seemed to break when the players had a long break, but Gauff immediately rebuilt pressure. In the second set, Jovic improved, broke serve, and led slightly. From love-30 in an important service game, Gauff won four straight points. That was not technique; it was rhythm control. She did not panic, did not change tactics, simply tightened her accuracy and let the opponent miss. Many analysts call this Gauff's most complete performance of 2026. They have reason. Her numbers are among the best in the tournament: long set streak, long match streak, and a winner-to-error ratio nearly double while her opponent's winner count was half. But what strikes me most is the simplification of choices. Gauff is no longer trying five options at once; she uses Plan A, and if it fails, shifts to Plan B, then C. She calls it 'no regrets.' Instead of blaming herself after losing a point, she uses on-court data to choose the next move. The upcoming quarterfinal will be a real test. Gauff faces Mirra Andreeva, the fifth seed and reigning French Open champion. Andreeva just defeated Potapova 5-7, 6-4, 6-3, showing she can win even after a slow start. The head-to-head record favors Gauff completely at 5-0, but a Grand Slam has its own pressure. If Gauff successfully defends her US Open title, she will reach the world No. 1 ranking for the first time in her career, provided Rybakina loses early. That places her in a position to chase both a title and a ranking. In the past, thinking about two goals at once made her lose comfort. Now she handles it with a short phrase: focus on the next match. I was wrong to think Gauff was just a defensive player with a good serve. In reality, this stretch from Cincinnati to New York shows she is evolving into an aggressive early-strike player. But precisely for that reason, traps remain. Early-strike, high-risk tennis can backfire against elite returners on fast courts. Andreeva is not known for overwhelming power, but she reads the game extremely well and won on clay through patience. If Gauff becomes too obsessed with finishing points early, she may make more unforced errors than usual. The key is whether she can keep 'Plan B' not just in her mind, but on the court. For years, Gauff was seen as a player who let emotions interfere. But the version who played Jovic does not allow negative emotions to linger. She has won 20 straight sets since the Cincinnati final. She has nine consecutive wins, her best run this year. For fans, this is a clear signal that Gauff is not just recovering form, but building a more solid technical framework. The success of the biomechanics work has not only improved her serve, but also benefited her entire game. With a better serve, she does not need to rush to the net unpredictably. With a better return, she seizes the rhythm from opponents. The connection between these two skills helps her attack while saving energy. Her match against Jovic ended quickly not just because the opponent was weaker, but because Gauff knew how to shorten games through tactical dominance. Now all attention shifts to Andreeva. This is Gauff's most serious early-round match of the tournament, scheduled on a main court before a fully supportive crowd. If Gauff wins, she will move closer to her second target: becoming world No. 1 for the first time. I trust the current data, but I also believe in mistakes the data cannot measure – the kind that once made her lose matches she seemed certain to win. The quarterfinal therefore is the best test of whether Gauff has truly moved past her past or is only temporarily suppressing it.