Coco Gauff revealed that a tense exchange with the chair umpire during her match against Karolina Pliskova fueled her determination to secure a 2-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory, propelling her into the quarterfinals of the Dubai Tennis Championships.
Despite losing the first set, Gauff was leading 4-2 in the second when a contentious call on her first serve at deuce, which Pliskova netted, was initially called out.
Although Gauff challenged the call and was vindicated by the review, the point was not awarded to her, as French chair umpire Pierre Bacchi instead ordered a replay, prompting Gauff to channel her frustration into her game and secure the win.
That sparked a lengthy back-and-forth between the pair, with Gauff's repeated requests to speak to a supervisor denied by the umpire.
"It definitely gave me some adrenaline," said Gauff, who eventually composed herself and won the replayed point. "Luckily, I was able to overcome that pretty quickly. I'm glad I was able to reset it.
"I think it just fueled me," she added.
"It's just one point. It happens in tennis. Players make mistakes, everybody makes mistakes.
"I was trying to tell myself to stay calm the next point. Sometimes I get angry and I go for too much. I was trying to let that not be the turning point for the set.
"Maybe I dragged it out a little longer than I needed to, but I did what I felt was best in that moment," she said.
Third-seeded Gauff faces Anna Kalinskaya later on Thursday for a place in the semifinals.
