She steadied herself and went on to a 6-3, 7-6 (4) victory over the 20-year-old Raducanu in Rod Laver Arena to reach the third round at Melbourne Park for the first time since 2020.
"Fans are eager to see a new face of the game,” said the seventh-seeded Gauff, who was the runner-up to No. 1 Iga Swiatek at the French Open last June.
Raducanu has not made it past the second round at a Grand Slam tournament since she won the 2021 U.S. Open as a teenager. That made her the first qualifier to claim a major trophy.
“We’re going to be playing each other many times in the future, as we’re both young and coming,” Raducanu said. “You know, like, we’re going to be the next generation.”
Currently ranked 77th, Raducanu has been dealing with an ankle injury and said she was on crutches 10 days before the Australian Open began.