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Gauff was pushed hard by a player who began the
week ranked 298th in the world, but once she banked the opening
set the outcome of the match was never in doubt.
"I thought I played really well and she was playing a high level
especially in the first set," U.S. Open champion Gauff said on
Court One under the closed roof.
"She wasn't giving me much to work with and not letting me
settle. I felt like I was going for the right shots but was just
missing, but eventually I found it."
Gauff reached the fourth round as a qualifier in 2019 when she
was 15 and also got to that stage in 2021 but has never
progressed to the quarter-finals.
Standing in the way now is 19th-seeded American Emma Navarro who
beat Diana Shnaider on Friday.
For 22-year-old Kartal, one of three Britons along with Emma
Raducanu and Harriet Dart to reach the third round, it proved to
be an unforgettable week.
As she heads off to get a tattoo so that she can have a
permanent reminder of her 2024 Wimbledon adventure, Kartal will
also be holding onto the memory of the roaring support she
received from the Court One crowd.
"It was unbelievable. From walking out to walking off. They were
behind me after every single point. I think it's something that
is truly special," said Kartel, who suffered an undisclosed
serious health issue at the start of 2024.
"It meant a lot to me today to have them backing me after every
point. That feeling of them in my ear when I was walking off,
that moment is going to stick around a long time for me."
(Reporting by Martyn Herman and Pritha Sarkar; Editing by Alison
Williams and Ken Ferris) [© 2024 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
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