Coco Gauff needed a third-set tiebreak to get past Argentina’s Solana Sierra on Wimbledon’s No. 1 Court, winning 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(10-7) to reach the third round. Sierra had a 7-4 lead in the breaker before Gauff reeled off six straight points to close it out.

The No. 7 seed had opened her tournament two days earlier with a routine 6-2, 6-1 win over Germany’s Tamara Korpatsch. Sierra was always going to be tougher, and she pushed Gauff to three sets before the American’s nerve held in the breaker.

How the match turned

Gauff took the first set comfortably enough, but Sierra came back hard, breaking through the American’s serve twice to force a decider. It was the kind of test Gauff has faced before on grass, a surface where her movement and return game don’t always translate as cleanly as they do on hard courts.

The tiebreak told the story. Sierra opened it well, racing to a 7-4 lead that looked like it might be enough to send the Argentine through. Gauff didn’t panic. She won six of the next seven points, closing out the match 10-7 in the breaker to advance.

It’s the kind of three-set grind that either breaks a player’s rhythm heading into the second week or sharpens it. Gauff has been here before at majors, and her record in deciding sets this year suggests she trusts her game in tight moments.

Two-time major champion chasing a Wimbledon breakthrough

Gauff arrives at this tournament as a two-time Grand Slam champion, but Wimbledon has been the major that’s given her the most trouble. Her run through Sierra keeps alive a campaign she’ll want to push deep into the second week.

The third round is where the draw usually starts to bite. Sierra was no easy out, and whoever Gauff faces next will have watched how close the Argentine came to pulling off the upset.

What’s next for Gauff

Gauff’s projected third-round opponent is 28th seed Ann Li, in what would be an all-American matchup. Gauff holds a 3-0 record against Li in their previous meetings. The other possibility is Turkey’s Zeynep Sonmez, whom Gauff has never faced at tour level.

Either way, Gauff will know the draw is opening up in front of her. Getting through a three-setter this early isn’t ideal, but it’s better than the alternative.

Gauff has cleared the round that’s given her trouble before. The next one will show whether that tiebreak was a wobble or a warning sign.