This is Gauff’s eighth career WTA championship and her first since January.
setdown The fourth-seeded American, who had trouble with her serve earlier in the week, had to come back from a set down in three of her previous matches to reach her first final since her victory in Auckland at the beginning of the year.
However, the 2023 US Open champion won 6-1 6-3 in one hour and 17 minutes, with no signs of weakness.
Jokingly, Gauff attributed her better form to a trip to Beijing’s Forbidden City with men’s champion Carlos Alcaraz.
She said to a receptive Chinese audience, “I guess the Imperial Palace brought us luck, so maybe I will pay a visit next year to get the same luck.”
The 20-year-old star’s performance in finishing the first set in just 30 minutes and forcing her opponent into a string of unintentional blunders to win two breaks of serve was everything but fortunate.
World number 49 Muchova, who reached as high as seventh before a lengthy layoff due to a wrist injury sustained at the 2023 US Open, defeated top seed Aryna Sabalenka and Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen in earlier rounds. However, Muchova was unable to match Gauff’s strength and agility.
