Thirteen American women began the second round in Paris. By the time the third-round board had settled, only five were still there: Gauff, Iva Jovic, Madison Keys, Peyton Stearns and Amanda Anisimova.
For one of the deepest national groups in the draw, that was a sharp cut. Gauff made sure she survived it, but Mayar Sherif made her work far harder than a 6-3, 6-2 scoreline suggests.
Sherif Made the First Set Feel Like a Long Afternoon
Gauff began with authority, racing to 3-0, but even that early lead came with friction. The first two games alone were full of deuce battles, and Sherif was already forcing the match into the slower, heavier rhythm she wanted.
Then the Egyptian worked her way in.
Sherif held for 3-1, broke for 3-2, and suddenly Gauff’s clean start had become a clay-court argument. The sixth game became the centre of the set: long, tense, full of resets, with Gauff needing repeated chances before finally breaking for 4-2.
That game mattered more than the scoreboard suggested. Sherif had already shown she could break Gauff’s rhythm. Gauff answered by staying inside the rally long enough to bend it back her way.
There was still more trading of breaks before the set ended, but Gauff closed it with her best piece of scoreboard authority: a love hold after an hour of first-set work.
The set was 6-3. The effort felt more like 7-5.
Gauff vs Mayar Sherif – Set One Stats
| Statistic | Gauff | Mayar Sherif Ahmed Abdelaziz |
|---|---|---|
| Dominance Ratio | 1.21 | 0.83 |
| Winners | 13 | 11 |
| Unforced Errors | 17 | 18 |
| Serve Rating | 225 | 210 |
| Aces | 2 | 0 |
| Double Faults | 3 | 2 |
| 1st Serve % | 74% (23/31) | 82% (36/44) |
| 1st Serve Points Won | 70% (16/23) | 42% (15/36) |
| 2nd Serve Points Won | 25% (2/8) | 63% (5/8) |
| Break Points Saved | 33% (1/3) | 70% (7/10) |
| Service Games | 60% (3/5) | 25% (1/4) |
| Ace % | 6.5% | 0% |
| Double Fault % | 9.7% | 4.5% |
| Return Rating | 201 | 212 |
| 1st Return Points Won | 58% (21/36) | 30% (7/23) |
| 2nd Return Points Won | 38% (3/8) | 75% (6/8) |
| Break Points Won | 30% (3/10) | 67% (2/3) |
| Return Games | 75% (3/4) | 40% (2/5) |
| Pressure Points | 44% (11/25) | 56% (14/25) |
| Service Points | 55% (17/31) | 45% (20/44) |
| Return Points | 55% (24/44) | 45% (14/31) |
| Net Points | 50% (5/10) | 92% (11/12) |
| Total Points | 55% (41/75) | 45% (34/75) |
| Set 1 Duration | 0h59m | |
Gauff Had to Deal With Bravery, Not Just Spin
Sherif’s best quality was not simply that she made balls. It was that she kept choosing brave options.
She came forward well, winning 15 of 21 net points, and she did not play like someone satisfied to extend rallies and hope Gauff missed. She tried to change the shape of points. She used height, depth and movement forward to make Gauff solve different problems.
Gauff acknowledged that afterwards, saying Sherif’s bravery had been highlighted in the scouting report. She also called Sherif underrated, especially on clay, because of how much she forces opponents to earn.
That came through clearly. This was not a match where Gauff got free rhythm for two sets. She had to defend, counter, reset and then attack when the right ball finally appeared.
The Second Set Tried to Get Messy Again
The second set opened like the first had never fully ended: breaks everywhere.
Gauff broke immediately. Sherif broke back. Gauff broke again. Sherif broke again. After four games, it was 2-2, and the match still had that awkward feeling of neither player being fully secure on serve.
Then Gauff separated herself.
She broke for 3-2 after Sherif had briefly threatened to escape from 40-0 down. From there, the American finally found a cleaner road. She held for 4-2, broke again for 5-2, and served out the match at love.
The finish was sharp. The final point, a backhand winner, gave the match a cleaner ending than the middle had earned.
Gauff vs Mayar Sherif Ahmed Abdelaziz – Set Two Stats
| Statistic | Gauff | Mayar Sherif Ahmed Abdelaziz |
|---|---|---|
| Dominance Ratio | 1.63 | 0.61 |
| Winners | 10 | 7 |
| Unforced Errors | 6 | 14 |
| Serve Rating | 218 | 179 |
| Aces | 2 | 0 |
| Double Faults | 0 | 0 |
| 1st Serve % | 57% (13/23) | 88% (21/24) |
| 1st Serve Points Won | 69% (9/13) | 24% (5/21) |
| 2nd Serve Points Won | 40% (4/10) | 67% (2/3) |
| Break Points Saved | 67% (4/6) | 33% (2/6) |
| Service Games | 50% (2/4) | 0% (0/4) |
| Ace % | 8.7% | 0% |
| Double Fault % | 0% | 0% |
| Return Rating | 276 | 174 |
| 1st Return Points Won | 76% (16/21) | 31% (4/13) |
| 2nd Return Points Won | 33% (1/3) | 60% (6/10) |
| Break Points Won | 67% (4/6) | 33% (2/6) |
| Return Games | 100% (4/4) | 50% (2/4) |
| Pressure Points | 64% (9/14) | 36% (5/14) |
| Service Points | 57% (13/23) | 29% (7/24) |
| Return Points | 71% (17/24) | 43% (10/23) |
| Net Points | 71% (5/7) | 44% (4/9) |
| Total Points | 64% (30/47) | 36% (17/47) |
| Set 2 Duration | 0h47m | |
The Return Game Did the Real Damage
The numbers explain why Sherif stayed close in feeling, but not on the scoreboard.
Sherif landed 84 percent of her first serves, which should normally be a platform. Against Gauff, it became almost meaningless. The American won 65 percent of Sherif’s first-serve points, taking 37 of 57. That is a brutal return number against an opponent making so many first serves.
Gauff also broke seven times from 16 chances and won 88 percent of her return games. Sherif held only one of eight service games.
That was the match’s deepest imbalance. Sherif could start points. She just could not start enough of them on her terms.
Gauff finished with 23 winners and 23 unforced errors, a clean enough attacking balance in a physical clay match. Sherif hit 18 winners but made 32 unforced errors, and those extra leaks slowly widened the gap.
Gauff’s Serve Was Not Perfect, but It Improved Fast Enough
Gauff’s own serve had a nervous opening. She double-faulted twice in her first service game, but then settled enough to avoid letting that become the story. She finished with only three double faults in total and won 69 percent of her first-serve points.
That was a major difference. Sherif won only 35 percent of her first-serve points despite landing so many first serves.
The second-serve numbers were stranger. Sherif won 64 percent behind her second serve, while Gauff won only 28 percent behind hers. But because Gauff’s return pressure kept Sherif under constant scoreboard stress, that advantage never fully changed the match.
Gauff did not serve like a machine. She did not need to. She returned like one.
Gauff Moves On as the American Field Shrinks
The American picture around Gauff became much thinner by the end of the round.
Iva Jovic beat Emma Navarro. Madison Keys moved past Antonia Ruzic. Peyton Stearns handled Daria Snigur. Amanda Anisimova advanced after Julia Grabher retired. But Claire Liu, Ann Li, Caty McNally, Katie Volynets, Alycia Parks, McCartney Kessler and Hailey Baptiste all left the singles draw in different ways.
That leaves Gauff as the biggest American name still moving, and one of only five from that group of 13 to reach the third round.
She now faces Anastasia Potapova, who beat Katie Boulter in three sets. The test will be different. The message from this one is clear enough: Gauff can win without the match being smooth, and she can make a 6-3, 6-2 scoreline out of something far more physical than it looks.
Sherif made her work.
Gauff made sure the work did not become danger.