Coco Gauff prevailed in yet another deciding set to defeat compatriot Jessica Pegula and reach the Wimbledon semi-finals.

For the fourth consecutive match, Gauff was taken the distance, but the 22-year-old dug deep to make the last four at SW19.

Just as she did against Belinda Bencic in the previous round, Gauff came from behind to win a tight contest, earning a 4-6 6-3 6-3 victory in one hour and 48 minutes on Centre Court to book a semi-final clash against either Naomi Osaka or Karolina Muchova.

Pegula started well on Tuesday and made her intentions clear by breaking Gauff in the first game of the match.

And after the pair exchanged breaks to love midway through the set, Pegula was ultimately able to close out the opener in relative comfort.

But Gauff was not going to go down without a fight, and she let out a roar after successfully fending off break points in each of her first two service games in the second set.

She had struggled to make inroads on return until a crucial eighth game, where the two-time major winner made the fourth seed pay for the previous missed opportunities by breaking to love. 

Gauff was then able to hold serve and level the match, sealing the set with an ace.

The decider followed a familiar pattern, with Pegula unable to convert an early break-point chance and Gauff then striking to move 3-1 ahead.

Pegula was able to recover the break, but Gauff still had the momentum and responded superbly, winning three straight games to surge over the line.

The last American standing

There were five American players in the women's singles last 16, but now Gauff is the sole United States representative in the semi-finals, with Pegula joining Iva Jovic, Madison Keys and Ashlyn Krueger in exiting the tournament.

Gauff had never gone beyond the fourth round at Wimbledon before this year. Now, she will fancy her chances as one of just two former grand slam winners – the other being Osaka – left in the draw.

It is certainly a statement result for Gauff. This was her ninth meeting against Pegula, with her experienced opponent coming into the contest with a 5-3 advantage in the head-to-head and a better track record on grass.

Defeat will therefore come as a huge blow to Pegula. She has now reached at least the last eight at 10 majors, but gone on to make the final on just one occasion (2024 US Open).

She could not prevent Gauff from becoming the youngest player to reach the women's singles semi-finals at all four majors since Maria Sharapova achieved that feat at the French Open in 2007.

Indeed, since the turn of the century, it is only Sharapova (92) who has won more women's singles grand slam matches than Gauff before turning 23, with this 85th such victory taking her past fellow American Serena Williams (84) in that statistical category.

Gauff did not do it the easy way in another mixed performance where she had as many double faults (seven) as she did aces, though she was ruthless at the key moments. On break points, she converted 100% of her opportunities (five out of five).

She is the first female player to reach the semi-finals after playing four three-set clashes between the second round and quarter-finals since Kimiko Date's dramatic run to the last four in 1996. 

Date would go on to lose yet another three-setter in the semi-final, being beaten by eventual champion Steffi Graf. Thirty years on, Gauff will look to fare better in the last four on Thursday.