Linda Noskova beat Coco Gauff for the first time in her career at the Mutua Madrid Open, knocking out the 2025 finalist in the Round of 16 and sending the draw into sharper focus. Noskova won the third set after Gauff had led 4-1, turning a match that looked set to go the American’s way.
Noskova, who had never beaten Gauff before and had not won a tiebreaker this season, came out looking very sharp in the first set before Gauff steadied herself and took the second. Gauff also looked better physically than she had in earlier rounds, but it was not enough to close out the match once Noskova began working her way back in the decider.
The result leaves American women in a thinner spot in Madrid. With Gauff out and Caty McNally yet to play, only one American woman is already through to the quarterfinals: Hailey Baptiste, who faces World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka. If McNally beats Marta Kostyuk, she would become the second American woman in the last eight and would face Noskova.
For Noskova, the win adds another layer to a growing profile. She is a 21-year-old from a deep Czech group that includes Karolina Muchova, Barbora Krejcikova, Katerina Siniakova and Karolina Pliskova, and Pliskova has also reached the Madrid quarterfinals after returning from years of injuries. In a tournament where Gauff, Anisimova, Madison Keys and Jessica Pegula are already out, Baptiste and possibly McNally are left chasing the kind of Madrid run that can change a season.
Noskova’s path now runs through the winner of McNally and Kostyuk, and the matchup will decide whether the Czech teenager gets another crack at an American or whether Madrid’s next surprise comes from somewhere else.