logo
Swiatek cruises, Osaka battles through in Montreal

Swiatek cruises, Osaka battles through in Montreal

France 246 days ago
Swiatek, seeded second in her first tournament since her crushing victory over Amanda Anisimova in the Wimbledon final, breezed past Chinese qualifier Guo Hanyu 6-3, 6-1, breaking Guo's serve six times.
Her untroubled tournament opener followed Osaka's battling victory over Samsonova.
The four-time Grand Slam champion from Japan saved back-to-back match points in the 10th game of the second set, and trailed 5-2 in the second-set tiebreaker on the way to a 4-6, 7-6 (8/6), 6-3 triumph.
Osaka, now working with Tomasz Wiktorowski after announcing on Monday she had split with coach Patrick Mouratoglou, notched her first win over a top-20 player since she beat Karolina Muchova at the Australian Open.
But she had to dig deep for the win after surrendering early breaks in each of the first two sets.
Wimbledon quarter-finalist Samsonova served for the match at 5-4 in the second and led 40-15. The Russian fired a forehand long on her first match point and on her second a lackluster drop shot effort gave Osaka an opening and the Japanese star pounced.
Samsonova's double fault on break point allowed Osaka to level the set, and after storming back in the tiebreaker to force a third set Osaka took control early, breaking Samsonova twice on the way to a 4-1 lead.
"She definitely came out really hard and, for me, I was definitely overwhelmed and I didn't know if I should also be hitting winners," Osaka said.
"But after a while I just tried to keep the ball in court," added Osaka, who snapped a four-match losing streak in three-setters.
Osaka next faces Latvia's Jelena Ostapenko, who beat Mexico's Renata Zarazua 6-2, 4-6, 6-2.
Australian Open champion Madison Keys, the sixth seed, opened her Canadian campaign with a 6-2, 6-1 victory over Laura Siegemund, avenging a third-round loss to the German at Wimbledon.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Fans gather in Poland for International piano festival
Fans gather in Poland for International piano festival

France 24

time9 hours ago

  • France 24

Fans gather in Poland for International piano festival

01:34 05/08/2025 Trump threatens India with high tariffs over Russian oil Asia / Pacific 05/08/2025 Brazil judge places former president Bolsonaro under house arrest Americas 05/08/2025 Serious mood and fewer perks: Silicon Valley enters its 'hard tech' era 05/08/2025 Israel to partially reopen Gaza private sector trade as Netanyahu prepares updated war plan Middle East 05/08/2025 Amid desperation in war-torn Gaza, 'environment of fear, intimidation and worry in West Bank' Middle East 05/08/2025 Hato new Chelsea's signing, Fritz made history in Toronto 04/08/2025 China and Russia hold joint naval drills in the Sea of Japan Asia / Pacific 04/08/2025 'Expulsion: There's no such thing as the emigration of Palestinians out of the Gaza Strip'

Djokovic withdraws from ATP Cincinnati Masters
Djokovic withdraws from ATP Cincinnati Masters

France 24

timea day ago

  • France 24

Djokovic withdraws from ATP Cincinnati Masters

Tournament officials confirmed the news to The Athletic, meaning the 38-year-old Serb will have played no matches between his Wimbledon semi-final loss to Jannik Sinner and the US Open start in three weeks. World number one Sinner, who like Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz skipped the current ATP Toronto Masters in order to rest and recover from Wimbledon, has been in Cincinnati since the weekend. Sinner and his team posted a golf course selfie to social media on Monday, one day after an opening practice session at the pre-US Open event. Djokovic, winner of 24 Grand Slam singles titles, first played Cincinnati in 2005 and won the last of his three titles there in 2023 after losing five previous finals. © 2025 AFP

Osaka roars into WTA Montreal quarter-finals as Keys fights through
Osaka roars into WTA Montreal quarter-finals as Keys fights through

France 24

time2 days ago

  • France 24

Osaka roars into WTA Montreal quarter-finals as Keys fights through

Keys saved two match points on her own serve in the 10th game of the third set, striping a forehand on the first and escaping the second as Czech Muchova misfired on a service return. The American emerged with a 4-6, 6-3, 7-5 victory -- her third of the season that included saving a match point. "I'm really happy to get that win," Keys told the crowd in Montreal. "After losing the first set and even being match point down, being able to figure it out -- it's always a great day." Osaka had no need of heroics as she blew past Anastasija Sevastova 6-1, 6-0 in just 49 minutes. The four-time Grand Slam champion from Japan notched the second-quickest tour-level win of her career, after a 42-minute 6-1, 6-1 rout of Ana Sofia Sanchez in the first round at Florianopolis back in 2016. The dominant victory also marked the first time Osaka has conceded just one game or fewer in a completed match since a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Danielle Collins at Beijing in 2018. Perhaps more importantly, it's the first time Osaka has reached the last eight of a 1000 level event or Grand Slam since Doha in 2024. Osaka did not play in 2023 after the birth of her daughter and has struggled for consistency since returning to the game a year ago. She fell in the first round of the French Open and the third round at Wimbledon this year and arrived in Montreal ranked 49th in the world. But she has shaken things up this week, announcing she was parting with coach Patrick Mouratoglou after less than a year and immediately getting to work with Poland's Tomasz Wiktorowski -- former coach of Iga Swiatek. "I had a solid plan coming in here and it just happened to work out pretty well," Osaka said of her dominant performance against Sevastova, a former world number 11 also on the comeback trail after maternity leave who had beaten two-time defending champion Jessica Pegula in the third round. Osaka will face either American Amanda Anisimova or Ukraine's Elina Svitolina for a semi-final berth. Anismimova is playing her first tournament since a runner-up finish to Swiatek at Wimbledon, where she admitted she was overwhelmed by nerves in a 6-0, 6-0 loss to the Polish star in the final. Keys, who won 10 of the last 12 points of her match, will face the winner of the first night match between second-seeded Swiatek and Denmark's Clara Tauson.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store