At the ongoing Cincinnati Open<\/a>, four unseeded players have reached the quarterfinals, which includes Varvara Gracheva and Veronika Kudermetova.<\/p>\n One of these players is guaranteed to reach the last four in Ohio, which further illustrates the competitive nature of the women\u2019s circuit.<\/p>\n Every seeded player knows what it is like to lose to unseeded and lower-ranked players, including Coco Gauff<\/a>.<\/p>\n This occurred as recently as in Montreal, when she lost to Mboko in the round of 16, winning just five games.<\/p>\n It is imperative that every player is always on their game as anyone can be beaten at any given time, especially unseeded players who are playing with no pressure.<\/p>\n Therefore, it is why Gauff admitted that sometimes she finds it easier to play against a top-ranked player than an unseeded one, as she knows what to expect.<\/p>\n \u201cHonestly, I think it\u2019s sometimes harder when you are playing people who are unseeded because they are going into that match with nothing to lose and everything to gain and if you look at it with that perspective you are going with the opposite,\u201d Gauff told reporters at a press conference in Cincinnati.<\/p>\n \u201cBut I don\u2019t pay attention to rankings or anything like that because at the end of the day, everybody is capable of winning, regardless of their ranking or anything, especially if you look at the last few tournaments, you definitely see that.<\/p>\n \u201cSo every match I am always on guard and ready and sometimes to be honest I get more relaxed playing a top seed because you expect them to play great tennis so something about knowing that if you lose it\u2019s because they are playing great tennis.<\/p>\n \u201cSometimes when you are playing an unranked person they can start off not playing so well and then all of a sudden be playing top five or top 10 tennis because they are loose and relaxed, so I think it\u2019s more of a mental thing than actually a ranking thing.\u201d<\/p>\n In her next match, Gauff will not need to worry about facing an unseeded player who could cause a surprise.<\/p>\n The 21-year-old will battle Italy\u2019s Jasmine Paolini<\/a> for a spot in the Cincinnati Open semifinals.<\/p>\n Paolini dispatched former Wimbledon<\/a> champion Barbora Krejcikova, losing just three games, to set up a fifth match against Gauff.<\/p>\n![\"Coco](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/GettyImages-2229430844-1024x683.jpg\")
Photo by Daniel Kopatsch\/Getty ImagesCoco Gauff says it is harder to face unseeded players in tournaments sometimes<\/p>\n![\"Internazionali](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/GettyImages-2215001684-1024x634.jpg\")
Photo by Robert Prange\/Getty ImagesCoco Gauff will face a fellow top 10 player in the Cincinnati Open quarterfinals<\/p>\n