World No. 53 McCartney Kessler toppled American superstar Coco Gauff 6-4, 7-5 in the second round of the 2025 Dubai Tennis Championships on Tuesday (18 February).

After a bye through the first round, the world number three Gauff was looking to secure her first WTA 1000 match victory of the season. She faced Kessler, who made it to the second round after overcoming Doha champion Amanda Anisimova.

A rain-delayed day in Dubai meant the pair had to wait patiently for their match, which was moved from Centre Court to Court 1, finally getting underway almost nine hours after the start of the session.

When play finally got underway, Kessler won with relative ease, breaking Gauff early in the opening set.

In the second, Gauff battled to stay in the tournament, overcoming an early break to bring the match back on serve, only to drop serve in the following game. Kessler, then, closed out the match.

Kessler will take on either Emma Raducanu or Karolina Muchová in the third round on Wednesday (19 February), subject to the tournament schedule.