Coco Gauff\u2019s 2026 Madrid Open campaign ended with a three-set loss to Linda Noskova, and the result is a welcome boost for Iga Swiatek in the WTA Rankings.<\/p>\n
No 3 seed Gauff<\/a> was beaten 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(5) by 13th seed Linda Noskova in the last 16 at the WTA 1000 tournament on Monday.<\/p>\n Gauff was up a double break at 4-1 in the final set, and she also led 3-0 and 4-2 in the decisive tiebreak, but Noskova fought back to seal the upset.<\/p>\n After her victory on Manolo Santana Stadium court, Noskova said: \u201cI know the match is not over until it\u2019s over.<\/p>\n \u201cI was kind of saying to myself that I\u2019m still close\u2026 even though it\u2019s 1-4 [in the third set]. I just wanted to find my rhythm and my game all over again.<\/p>\n \u201cI was kind of hoping or counting on that game [in the second set] that I was going to have the break up and then it didn\u2019t happen and I kind of lost my rhythm.<\/p>\n \u201cObviously, also with Coco who is such a player, it\u2019s never easy to find it immediately back again and continue the way you want it to play. But I just wanted to restart in the third set.<\/p>\n WTA Tour News<\/p>\n Iga Swiatek sends candid message after retiring at Madrid Open as Boris Becker reacts<\/a><\/p>\n Elena Rybakina has no \u2018trust\u2019 in line-calling system after \u2018stolen point\u2019 in Madrid Open<\/a><\/p>\n Want more from Tennis365? Add us as\u00a0a preferred source on Google to your favourites list<\/a>\u00a0for tennis coverage you can trust.<\/p>\n \u201cI let [the third set] go away a little too far, but I\u2019m still glad I pulled it out.\u201d<\/p>\n In the latest edition of the WTA Rankings,\u00a0Gauff occupied the world No 3 spot with 7,279 points \u2014 putting her just six points ahead of fourth-ranked Swiatek<\/a>.<\/p>\n The American was, however, defending 650 points in Madrid as she was a runner-up at last year\u2019s event, which dropped her total to 6,629 in the Live WTA Rankings before her opening match.<\/p>\n Swiatek was defending 390 points from her 2025 Madrid semi-final run, which put her on 6,883 points \u2014 254 clear of Gauff \u2014 at the start of her campaign.<\/p>\n After winning her opening match, Swiatek was forced to retire during her third round contest with Ann Li due to a virus, which left her on 6,948 points.<\/p>\n Gauff improved her points total in the Live WTA Rankings to 6,749 by defeating Leolia Jeanjean and Sorana Cirstea in her first two matches.<\/p>\n The 22-year-old\u2019s fourth round loss to Noskova, though, means she will drop to world No 4 when the WTA Rankings update as she needed to reach the semi-finals in Madrid to climb back above Swiatek.<\/p>\n The two-time major champion revealed after beating Cirstea in the third round that she had been struggling with the virus that has affected Swiatek and other players in the Spanish capital.<\/p>\n