Will the favorite suffer a second straight final defeat?

Coco Gauff has done it again! Just like last year, she’s back in the final of the Rome tournament. Now she’s looking to do better than she did a year ago, when the American lost the final to local hero Jasmine Paolini in straight sets. We’ve got a tip ready for the upcoming final between Coco Gauff and Elina Svitolina!

Even though Gauff has once again secured a spot in the final, her path along the Tiber has been rocky. In three of the five matches she played at the Rome tournament, the 2023 US Open and 2025 French Open champion had to go the distance in three sets.

She also had a mixed clay-court season leading up to the tournament. She reached only the quarterfinals in Stuttgart and then just the round of 16 in Madrid.

These were not satisfactory results for the 22-year-old from Florida, and she now faces a strong opponent in the Ukrainian. The player from Odessa recently defeated Iga Siwatek, who has already won the tournament in Rome three times.

At the same time, she has shown that the tournament in the Italian capital suits her particularly well. She has already won it twice, a feat Svitolina has not achieved at any other tournament on the WTA Tour!

Given this situation, we are predicting that the Ukrainian will not lose in two sets in the match between Coco Gauff and Elina Svitolina. Furthermore, we expect at least one set to be decided in a tiebreak. 

Coco Gauff – Elina Svitolina Head-to-Head Record

The two players have faced each other twice this season. The matches took place in Dubai and at the Australian Open, with the Ukrainian coming out on top in both.

Thanks to those two wins, she leads the head-to-head record 3-2. However, this will be the first time the American and the 31-year-old Eastern European have faced each other on clay.

For the first meeting on this surface between Coco Gauff and Elina Svitolina, the odds slightly favor the world No. 4.

Coco Gauff – Elina Svitolina Prediction

The Ukrainian arrived in Rome in strong form. Svitolina has already won the tournament in Auckland this year and also reached the final at the tournament in Dubai.

Furthermore, as mentioned, the former world No. 3 has already defeated her upcoming opponent twice in 2026. We therefore view them as evenly matched, and in light of this, we see sufficient value in the betting odds for the match between Coco Gauff and Elina Svitolina on a victory for the slight underdog, including a 1.5-set lead.

Another factor supporting this is that the American has dropped a set in three of the five matches she has played in Rome. The form of her country’s flag-bearer for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris is thus currently, despite reaching the final, in need of improvement.