Coco Gauff admitted that she was determined to prove her coach wrong ahead of the Wuhan Open, following her win over Jessica Pegula in an all-American final, sealing a 6-4 7-5 straight-sets victory. 

Gauff stormed into the lead in the first set, breaking serve immediately, and was in little jeopardy from there on in. 

While Pegula threatened to mount a comeback in the second set, reeling off the first three games to take a hard-fought 3-0 lead, Gauff battled back to claim the crown, winning seven of her last nine games.

Clinching the title, the 21-year-old became just the second player to claim the titles at both WTA-1000 events held in China (Beijing in 2024 and Wuhan in 2025) after Caroline Garcia (both in 2017).

25 - Coco Gauff is the player with the fewest games dropped to win the title at Wuhan Open since the tournament's inception in 2014 (25). Dominate. #WuhanOpen | @wuhanopentennis @WTA @WTA_insider pic.twitter.com/vMPTSThKWS

— OptaAce (@OptaAce) October 12, 2025

"I'd like to thank my team; it was a great Asian swing. I'm going to call JC out. He originally didn't want me to come because I had a tough US Open," Gauff said. 

"But I had to prove him wrong. I'm a very stubborn person, so maybe he said that on purpose for me to have a good result here. But yeah, thank you guys."

Gauff's journey to the title saw her become the player with the fewest games dropped to be crowned Wuhan Open champion since the tournament's inception in 2014 (25).

"I'd like to congratulate Jess on an incredible tournament. You're playing a lot of three-setters, you're a three-set queen, so I was determined to not let you get there today because it felt like the odds would be in your favour in the third set," Gauff added.

"When I came on the tour, you were one of the first people to be nice to me and welcome me with open arms, and that really goes a long way; it still goes a long way, so I appreciate you, and it's great to finally play in a final against you, and I hope for many more."