Coco Gauff comes from a set down to defeat fellow American Jessica Pegula and reach her first semi-final in SW19 at Wimbledon 2026

Coco Gauff moved into her maiden Wimbledon semi-final with an impressive three-set win over Jessica Pegula.

The seventh seed demonstrated her trademark resilience to grit out a hard-fought 4-6 6-3 6-3 victory in one hour and 48 minutes on Centre Court.

Gauff’s much-maligned serve was the two-time Grand Slam champion’s Achilles heel early on, as she threw in two double faults to allow Pegula to break from the off.

The seventh seed hit back from 3-1 down to level, but immediately dropped serve to love as back-to-back double faults again proved costly.

Pegula, 32, remained calm and composed from there to serve out a 34-minute opener.

Gauff, 22, is renowned for her never-say-die fighting spirit, and it came to the fore in a tight second set when she broke to love in the eighth game before hitting back from 15-30 down to serve it out and force the decider.

The younger American maintained her momentum in the third as a supreme lob-volley paved a path to the early break and a 3-1 lead.

Pegula hit back to square it, but immediately dropped serve to love, allowing Gauff to go on and break again on her first match point, and book a last four showdown with Karolina Muchova, who beat Naomi Osaka in straight sets.

Gauff is the first player to reach the women’s singles semi-finals in Wimbledon with four three-setters from the second round to the quarter-finals since Kimiko Date in 1996.

It’s all over!

Pegula can’t force the serve-out question as she unravels from 30-0 up with a tight backhand into the net on Coco’s first match point.

One away!

Coco fights back from 15-30 to edge another hard-fought hold and leave Jess with it all to do to rescue the match.

Pegula leaks avoidable errors off both wings to allow Coco to regain the initiative with a morale-sapping break to love.

Coco chokes up her seventh double to feel pressure at Pulp but wins the point of the match seconds later with an improvised dropper on the run from the left side of her baseline.

The seventh seed blinks first in a high-octane rally to prolong her examination at deuce and she comes up short as a tame forehand allows Jpeg to break after she had earned the BP with a clinical volley.

Pegula digs deep to stay alive with a dogged hold from 0-30 down.

Gauff hammers a confident crosscourt forehand pass to consolidate with a hold to 15.

It’s Coco who makes a move first in the decider!

The seventh seed hoists up a lovely lob volley to turn a rally around at 15-30 and angle away a more routine volley to tee up two BPs.

She only needs one as Jess volleys wide on the stretch to fall behind for the first time in the contest.

Coco comes up clutch on serve to make deuce after Jess had snared break point with a rasping return that forced the half volley off a S+V tactic fly wide.

The seventh seed is made to work hard again but continues to scrap free and you wonder if Pegula may regret some of these missed opportunities come the end of this contest…

Pegula slams down just her second ace of the day and does a good job of resetting after that late dip in the second as a lovely backhand winner secures the hold to 15.

Coco hits back from 15-30 to serve it out and take us into a third!

Gauff raises the stakes on the return and a lighting bolt to feet forces the error long to tee up triple break point.

Pegula blinks and double faults on the first to surrender her serve to love and give the seventh seed a chance to serve-out this second set.

There’s that trademark Coco fight.

The seventh seed finds herself starting down the barrel at 0-30 after Jpeg had opened with a brilliant backhand drive volley.

Gauff refuses to buckle and reels off four points in a row to keep her nose in front and her hopes of turning this match around.

Jess lands a rare ace to close-out a routine game to 15 and this second set remains finely poised heading into its key moments.

It’s something of a rarity for Coco as she cruises through a clean hold of her own to reply in-kind and keep pushing the board in her favour in the second.

That is super sharp from Jess.

Coco doesn’t get a look-in as the fourth seed powers to a love hold.

Coco’s much-maligned forehand and serve falter as a sixth double fault gifts Jpeg another break point.

Gauff resists and slams down an ace before roaring with relief and delight as she claws through an error-strewn game.

Pegula misses a forehand down the line by a whisker at 40-15 and needs to dig in from deuce.

Gauff frowns when she drills a make-able backhand into the net and the fourth seed escapes on to the board with a timely first serve.

Gauff takes a deep breath and rolls her eyes as another double fault puts her in trouble on serve right at the start of the second.

The seventh seed survives two break points with Jpeg fizzing long on the second, but she needs a spectacular, leaping backhand pass to pull free from deuce and it’s perhaps no surprise to see her dig out the hold with her trademark resilience.