Melbourne, Jan 18 (AP) Coco Gauff was twice a point away from being pushed to a third set by Emma Raducanu at the Australian Open but steadied herself and went on to a 6-3, 7-6 (4) victory on Wednesday in the first head-to-head meeting between two young stars of tennis.

"This was a long-anticipated matchup," said the seventh-seeded Gauff, who was the runner-up to No. 1 Iga Swiatek at the French Open last June. "Basically since the draw came out."

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The 18-year-old from Florida moved into the third round at Melbourne Park for the first time since 2020. She is the youngest seed in the women's field.

Raducanu, a 20-year-old who represents Britain, has not made it past the second round at a Grand Slam tournament since she won the 2021 U.S. Open as a teenager. That made her the first qualifier to claim a major trophy.

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Currently ranked 77th, Raducanu has been dealing with an ankle injury. Yet she was so close to extending this match, holding a pair of set points while ahead 5-4 in the second set.

On the first chance, Raducanu sailed a backhand long. On the second, she dumped an attempted drop shot into the net.

That helped Gauff hold serve there. More miscues by Raducanu tilted the tiebreaker -- and the match -- Gauff's way.

"I just told myself," Gauff said, "to hang in there."

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)