Osaka starts strong, grab first top 10 win in almost five years

Naomi Osaka recorded her first top-10 win in four-and-a-half years after prevailing over Jelena Ostapenko at the Louis Armstrong Stadium in a round-one clash on Tuesday at the US Open.

The 26-year-old Japanese and two-time US Open champion got off to a flying start against Latvian Jelena Ostapenko 6-3, 6-2 in less than two hours to book her spot in the second round.

Osaka was credited with 19 winners, against only five unforced errors. She won 39 of her 50 service points and was not broken.

Osaka has now won 23 of her last 28 matches (.821) at the US Open—among current players with 10-plus main-draw matches played here, only Bianca Andreescu (.857) has a higher winning percentage.

Osaka who stands at No.88 in the PIF WTA Rankings and needed a wild card to get into the main draw will next face Karolína Muchová on Thursday for a place in the third round.

Elsewhere, World No.1 Iga Swiatek saved triple set point to defeat lucky loser Kamilla Rakhimova 6-4, 7-6(6) 7 under 1 hour and 52 minutes in the first round of the US Open on Tuesday.

Swiatek, who is playing her first match after clinching a bronze medal at the 2024 Olympics games in Paris three weeks ago, will next meet Japanese Ena Shibahara on Thursday.

Other results

Other results on day two saw No. 25 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkovawas the first victor of the day, needing just 61 minutes to rout Australian wildcard Taylah Preston 6-2, 6-0.

Last year’s semifinalist, Karolina Muchova, playing just the sixth tournament of her comeback from wrist surgery and ranked No. 52, advanced 6-3, 7-5 past Katie Volynets — though the story of the match was the spectacular hot shot the Czech conjured up in the second set, a leaping, no-look, behind-the-back lob.

Sara Errani, the 2012 US Open semifinalist, notched her first win in Flushing Meadows since 2015 with a 3-0, 6-0, 6-4 defeat of Cristina Bucsa. Errani is the freshly crowned Olympic doubles gold medallist alongside Jasmine Paolini.

Ashlyn Krueger and Jessika Ponchet both came into the US Open with a 0-6 record in Grand Slam first rounds, and both managed to get over the hurdle at their seventh attempt. Krueger rebounded from a disastrous start in which she won just five points in the first five games, but eventually edged Zhang Shuai 0-6, 6-1, 7-5. Zhang is now on a 23-match losing streak stretching back to February 2023. Meanwhile, French qualifier Ponchet advanced 6-4, 6-1 past Zheng Saisai.

Two-time finalist Caroline Wozniacki raced past qualifier Nao Hibino 6-0, 6-1 in just 53 minutes.