Coco Gauff required another stirring fightback to remain in the Italian Open, saving match point en route to a 5-7 7-5 6-2 win over 18-year-old Iva Jovic in the last 16.

Gauff needed three sets and over two hours to defeat Solana Sierra 5-7 6-0 6-4 in the previous round, and it was a similar story on Monday as she edged into the quarter-finals.

Last year's runner-up in Rome was staring elimination in the face when she went a set and a break down to Jovic, with the teenager applying near-constant pressure to Gauff's serve throughout the opener.

Gauff broke in game one of set two, but Jovic then hit back in games four and eight, giving herself an opportunity to serve for a spot in the last eight.

She brought up match point but could not convert, and Gauff made her third break point of that game count, with another, more routine break at the next attempt forcing a decider. 

The start of the third set was chaotic, as nobody held serve in the first five games. Gauff took three of those breaks, and after finally ending the pattern in a tough sixth game, the two-time grand slam champion broke again to give herself breathing room.

Jovic's return on match point flew long as Gauff served the contest out, and she will face Mirra Andreeva for a place in the semi-finals, after the eighth seed defeated Elise Mertens in straight sets.

The comeback QUEEN @CocoGauff comes back from the brink to confirm her place in the quarterfinals, defeating Jovic 5-7, 7-5, 6-2!#IBI26 pic.twitter.com/IzpTxfpP3N

— wta (@WTA) May 11, 2026

Data Debrief: When in Rome... 

Gauff may have been tested in each of her three matches in Rome this year, also being pushed hard by teenager Tereza Valentova in her opener, but she has battled her way into a third straight Italian Open quarter-final.

The 22-year-old is the youngest player to achieve that feat since Iga Swiatek (2021 to 2023) and the youngest American since Mary Joe Fernandez (1991 to 1993).