Linda Nosková became the first singles player to reach the 2026 WTA Finals semifinals, beating Coco Gauff 6–3, 6–3 on November 10 in Indian Wells. The Czech player moved to 2–0 in Group 1 on her tournament debut.
Second serves made the difference
Nosková took 18 of the 24 points played on Gauff’s second serve. She converted five of nine break chances, with four of those breaks coming in the opening set. The match lasted 75 minutes.
That return advantage explains why this was more than a story about Nosková’s own serve. Gauff won just six points behind her second delivery, giving Nosková repeated opportunities to get ahead in return games. Four early breaks gave the Czech player room to absorb swings in her own service games without surrendering the set.
What the result means
Nosková has secured a place in the knockout stage. The 2–0 record describes her group campaign through this match; it is not a tournament title or a final group ranking.
Source: WTA match report. Prepared with AI assistance and editorial review.
Linda Nosková at the 2024 Paris Olympics (archive). Photo: Like tears in rain / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Resized and compressed.
