Italian Open: Elina Svitolina stuns Coco Gough in thrilling final

Ukraine’s Elina Svitolina won her third Italian Open title after a thrilling three-set victory over Coco Goff in the final.

The 31-year-old came from 4-2 down to win the first set and despite losing the second in a tie-break, Svitolina responded to claim the decider to win 6-4 6-7 (3-7) 6-2.

Her road to success in Rome has included remarkable three-set victories over world number two Elena Rybakina, number three Iga Suatek and now fourth-ranked Goff.

Svitolina, whose previous wins at the tournament came in 2017 and 2018, said: “It’s hard to believe it’s been eight years since I got this trophy and I’m so happy to be here for two weeks.”

The world No. 10 enjoyed a third straight victory over Gough, beating the American in the Australian Open quarter-finals and the Dubai Tennis Championships semi-finals.

“Another tough battle between us,” admitted Gough, who also finished runner-up in Rome last year, but went on to win the French Open. “I’m on the other side but hopefully one of these days I’ll get over it.”

He praised Svitolina for her impressive run against a more favored opponent as he added: “You had an incredible tournament – very long matches against great players so congratulations to you and your team.”