Defending champion Gauff into China Open last four

Defending champion Coco Gauff beat Eva Lys in straight sets to reach her third consecutive China Open semi-final.

The world number three took one hour and 28 minutes to overcome her German opponent 6-3 6-4.

Gauff, a two-time Grand Slam winner, broke Lys' serve three times in the opening set.

"I'm happy with how I played. She's a tough opponent and she hit some incredible shots on the run, but I tried my best to play aggressive and good tennis," said Gauff, who is seeded third.

"I think staying confident in my game [was important]. Not being too passive when I had the lead, I played one passive point in the last game but after that I played good tennis."

The 21-year-old American, who has struggled with her serve at times this season, has been working on that problem and had an impressive 78% first serve percentage throughout the match.

Gauff, who was knocked out in the first round at Wimbledon after winning the French Open, before falling to Naomi Osaka in the US Open fourth round, is now the highest-ranked player left in this week's event.

She will face American compatriot Amanda Anisimova - runner-up at Wimbledon and the US Open this year - in the last four.

Anisimova, seeded second, came from a set down to beat Italy's Jasmine Paolini 6-7 (4-7) 6-3 6-4 and will play in her sixth semi-final of the year.

Source - BBC