Jasmine Paolini set up a meeting with Coco Gauff after reaching her second Cincinnati Open quarter-final with a straight-sets win over Barbora Krejcikova.

It took the Italian just 65 minutes to get past an ailing Krejcikova 6-1 6-2 to set up a repeat of the 2023 Cincinnati last eight, when Gauff triumphed en route to the title.

Paolini raced into a 3-0 lead in the first set, converting her third break point in the second game to assert herself in the match.

Though Krejcikova got on the board, all she did was temporarily stop Paolini's winning streak, as she won the next three games to take the first set.

She then won the first three games of the second, at which point the 2024 Wimbledon champion received medical treatment on her left foot, with her movement visibly hampered afterwards.

Krejcikova managed to hold serve in her last two such games, but Paolini had already opened up too big a lead and cruised into the last eight of the competition.

2 - Jasmine Paolini is the the second Italian player in the Open Era to reach multiple quarterfinals in Women's Singles at Cincinnati (2023 and 2025) after Flavia Pennetta (2004, 2009 and 2010). Rise. #CincyTennis | @CincyTennis @WTA @WTA_insider pic.twitter.com/mEDYc5spOY

— OptaAce (@OptaAce) August 14, 2025

"I think she wasn't at 100%, but she's an unbelievable player," Paolini said afterwards.

"She can put the ball wherever she wants every time. I don't know how she does this. But I'm happy that I tried to stay there mentally until the last point."

Data Debrief: Paolini keeps pushing

Paolini is now just the second Italian player in the Open Era to reach multiple quarterfinals in women's singles at Cincinnati (2023 and 2025), after Flavia Pennetta (2004, 2009 and 2010).

Both of those last-eight encounters have come against Gauff, with the American winning the last encounter in straight sets, dropping just five games.

And it will be their fifth meeting on Friday, with the pair level at 2-2 in their head-to-head; though Paolini has won the last two clashes, Gauff has won both previous matches on hard courts.