New York, Aug 29 (AP) Naomi Osaka has advanced to the third round of the U.S. Open for the first time since her 2021 appearance, following her victory in 2020. Despite her impressive form, Osaka remains non-committal about her prospects for a deep run in this year's tournament. “Honestly, I don't really know. I don't make it my business to know anymore. I kind of just leave it up in the air,” Osaka stated after a commanding 6-3, 6-1 win over Hailey Baptiste in merely 70 minutes on Thursday. “For me, I realize that I've done everything that I could. I've trained really hard. I practiced really hard. If it happens, it happens.”
Osaka thrives on hard courts, the surface on which she has claimed her four Grand Slam titles—twice at the U.S. Open and twice at the Australian Open. However, since 2020, her performances in New York have varied, with losses in the third round in 2021, the first round in 2022, and the second round last year. The hard courts complement her style, which includes a powerful serve and aggressive baseline play, tactics she used effectively against Baptiste. Additionally, she's been mixing up her speeds and spins to keep opponents guessing.
This week, Osaka’s return game has also been notable, having won 11 out of 18 return games over two matches, including a 6-3, 6-4 victory against Greet Minnen in the opening round. Recently, Osaka split with coach Patrick Mouratoglou post-Wimbledon and has since teamed up with Tomasz Wiktorowski, formerly of Iga Swiatek's coaching team. Wiktorowski has encouraged her to focus on shot placement rather than always going for winners. “Honestly, I didn't know him, I thought he was very scary, because he's very tall and he didn't smile,” Osaka confessed, “Now that we're working together, I see that he smiles often. He has a very friendly smile, and it's very nice. That's my little fun fact about Tomasz.”
Venus Williams makes a triumphant return in doubles Venus Williams, partnering not with her sister Serena but with Leylah Fernandez, secured her first U.S. Open women's doubles victory since 2014. The duo overcame the sixth-seeded team of Lyudmyla Kichenok and Ellen Perez with a 7-6 (4), 6-3 victory.
Other notable events at the U.S. Open Wimbledon champions Iga Swiatek and Jannik Sinner both triumphed, although Swiatek's match was more challenging. She battled past Suzan Lamens, a newcomer to Grand Slam events, with a 6-1, 4-6, 6-4 result. Sinner achieved a straightforward 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 win over Alexei Popyrin. American Coco Gauff overcame serving troubles and emotions to defeat Donna Vekic 7-6 (5), 6-2. On the men's side, No. 3 seed Alexander Zverev took down Jacob Fearnley with a consistent 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 result.
What to expect on Friday's schedule In Friday's lineup, Carlos Alcaraz, the defending 2022 men's champion, and Jessica Pegula, the 2024 women's runner-up, will compete in their third-round matches at Arthur Ashe Stadium during the day. In the night session, Novak Djokovic, who boasts 24 Grand Slam titles, will face off against Cam Norrie. Following that, American Taylor Townsend, after an intense match against Jelena Ostapenko, will play against No. 5 seed Mirra Andreeva, an 18-year-old Russian.
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