RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Coco Gauff won the WTA Finals for the first time by rallying to beat Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (2) in Saturday’s title match.
The 20-year-old American came from 2-0 and 5-3 down in the final set and was two points from defeat at one stage.
Yet she took the set to a tiebreaker and won the first six points. Zheng threatened a comeback of her own, but Gauff took the victory off her third match point with a forehand winner as she came into the net.
She is the first American to win the WTA Finals since Serena Williams in 2014, and received $4.8 million in prize money. She also is the youngest player to win it since Maria Sharapova in 2004, the year Gauff was born.
Gauff beat the world’s top two players — Aryna Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek — on her run to the final at the season-ending event in Riyadh.