Osaka sails into Canadian Open semis, Shelton knocks out De Minaur
It marks Osaka's first WTA 1000 semi-final since Miami in 2022, as the Japanese former world number one needed just over an hour to secure victory over the 10th seeded Svitolina.
Osaka capitalised on Svitolina's unforced errors to break twice and move within a game of taking the first set. Despite dropping serve while Svitolina threatened to shift the momentum, Osaka held her nerve, broke back and closed out the opener.
Swiatek sinks, Osaka shines at Canadian Open
The second set was more closely contested, but Osaka converted two more break points to seal the win in Montreal.
The 27-year-old will next face Danish 16th seed Clara Tauson, who secured her second consecutive win over a top 10 opponent by defeating American sixth seed Madison Keys 6-1 6-4 to reach the semis having previously beaten six-times major winner Iga Swiatek.
'I think for me, I'm just having a lot of fun playing and I'm really glad to be here,' Osaka said.
'She's (Tauson) really tough. I played her in Auckland this year and I had to stop halfway because I was injured. So, I'm really excited that I'm healthy and I hope that it's a good match for everyone that comes and watches.'
Tauson was clinical in the opening set against Keys, converting both of her break point opportunities and serving it out in just over half an hour.
Australian Open champion Keys dropped serve again early in the second, leaving the 22-year-old Tauson on course for just the second WTA 1000 semi of her career.
In the men's tournament in Toronto, American second seed Taylor Fritz advanced to the semis with a 6-3 7-6(4) victory over Russian sixth seed Andrey Rublev.
Wimbledon semi-finalist Fritz got off to a blistering start, winning six straight points and breaking his opponent's serve in his first return game.
The 27-year-old maintained his momentum behind a dominant service performance and appeared poised to close out the match while serving at 5-4 in the second set.
Rublev, however, mounted a comeback, saving a match point and converting his fourth break point to level the set before forcing a tiebreak, where Fritz finally secured the win.
'That whole game was so shaky for me,' Fritz said.
'It's weird because he was holding easy, I was holding easy. It felt so like calm and chill and all of a sudden I'm serving to be in the semis, the pressure of the game came out of nowhere.
'There's no way to sugarcoat it, it was a tight game. My brain kind of turned off. The only thing you can do is come back and win the set. I would be a lot more upset about what happened in the game if I lose the match. Winning makes it feel not as bad.'
Next up for Fritz is compatriot and fourth seed Shelton, who beat Australian ninth seed De Minaur 6-3 6-4 to reach his first career Masters 1000 semi-final.
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Osaka sails into Canadian Open semis
Four-times Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka reached the semi-finals of the Canadian Open for the first time after beating Ukrainian Elina Svitolina 6-2 6-2 in the quarters on Tuesday, while Ben Shelton eliminated Alex de Minaur on the men's side. It marks Osaka's first WTA 1000 semi-final since Miami in 2022, as the Japanese former world number one needed just over an hour to secure victory over the 10th seeded Svitolina. Osaka capitalised on Svitolina's unforced errors to break twice and move within a game of taking the first set. Despite dropping serve while Svitolina threatened to shift the momentum, Osaka held her nerve, broke back and closed out the opener. The second set was more closely contested, but Osaka converted two more break points to seal the win in Montreal. The 27-year-old will next face Danish 16th seed Clara Tauson, who secured her second consecutive win over a top 10 opponent by defeating American sixth seed Madison Keys 6-1 6-4 to reach the semis having previously beaten six-times major winner Iga Swiatek. "I think for me, I'm just having a lot of fun playing and I'm really glad to be here," Osaka said. "She's (Tauson) really tough. I played her in Auckland this year and I had to stop halfway because I was injured. So, I'm really excited that I'm healthy and I hope that it's a good match for everyone that comes and watches." Tauson was clinical in the opening set against Keys, converting both of her break point opportunities and serving it out in just over half an hour. Australian Open champion Keys dropped serve again early in the second, leaving the 22-year-old Tauson on course for just the second WTA 1000 semi of her career. In the men's tournament in Toronto, American second seed Taylor Fritz advanced to the semis with a 6-3 7-6(4) victory over Russian sixth seed Andrey Rublev. Wimbledon semi-finalist Fritz got off to a blistering start, winning six straight points and breaking his opponent's serve in his first return game. The 27-year-old maintained his momentum behind a dominant service performance and appeared poised to close out the match while serving at 5-4 in the second set. Rublev, however, mounted a comeback, saving a match point and converting his fourth break point to level the set before forcing a tiebreak, where Fritz finally secured the win. "That whole game was so shaky for me," Fritz said. "It's weird because he was holding easy, I was holding easy. It felt so like calm and chill and all of a sudden I'm serving to be in the semis, the pressure of the game came out of nowhere. "There's no way to sugarcoat it, it was a tight game. My brain kind of turned off. The only thing you can do is come back and win the set. I would be a lot more upset about what happened in the game if I lose the match. Winning makes it feel not as bad." Next up for Fritz is compatriot and fourth seed Shelton, who beat Australian ninth seed De Minaur 6-3 6-4 to reach his first career Masters 1000 semi-final.
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Former world number three Elina Svitolina said she was flooded with online abuse, including death threats, after her Canadian Open defeat on Tuesday and blamed the 'shameful' behaviour on disgruntled bettors. The 10th seed from Ukraine crashed to a 6-2 6-2 quarter-final loss against four-times Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka at the Montreal WTA tournament and later highlighted the abuse directed at her and her family. Tennis players, like many athletes, often have to deal with the wrath of gamblers online despite the efforts of authorities to tackle the issue with measures that include the blocking of social media accounts. 'To all the bettors: I'm a mom before I'm an athlete,' Svitolina, 30, wrote in an Instagram story in which she attached screenshots of the messages that included death threats. 'The way you talk to women - to mothers - is SHAMEFUL. If your moms saw your messages, they'd be disgusted.' Some of the abusive messages Svitolina shared referenced the ongoing war in her country following Russia's invasion. A study undertaken by some of the various governing bodies of tennis said that angry gamblers were responsible for nearly half of all the abuse that was directed at players on social media last year. Frenchwoman Caroline Garcia said after her loss at last year's U.S. Open that 'unhealthy betting' was one of the top reasons players were targeted and took aim at social media platforms for not doing enough to filter the abuse. She had said that it hurt players, especially after tough losses when they were 'emotionally destroyed' and she worried about how younger players would be affected. Reuters has contacted the WTA for comment and details of their latest efforts to combat the issue. Osaka sails into Canadian Open semis, Shelton knocks out De Minaur Svitolina's husband and fellow professional Gael Monfils had humorously hit back at gamblers after an early loss in Stuttgart this year, with the 38-year-old saying he was surprised people still put money on him to win against much younger opponents.
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Osaka sails into Canadian Open semis, Shelton knocks out De Minaur
Four-times Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka reached the semi-finals of the Canadian Open for the first time after beating Ukrainian Elina Svitolina 6-2 6-2 in the quarters on Tuesday, while Ben Shelton eliminated Alex de Minaur on the men's side. It marks Osaka's first WTA 1000 semi-final since Miami in 2022, as the Japanese former world number one needed just over an hour to secure victory over the 10th seeded Svitolina. Osaka capitalised on Svitolina's unforced errors to break twice and move within a game of taking the first set. Despite dropping serve while Svitolina threatened to shift the momentum, Osaka held her nerve, broke back and closed out the opener. Swiatek sinks, Osaka shines at Canadian Open The second set was more closely contested, but Osaka converted two more break points to seal the win in Montreal. The 27-year-old will next face Danish 16th seed Clara Tauson, who secured her second consecutive win over a top 10 opponent by defeating American sixth seed Madison Keys 6-1 6-4 to reach the semis having previously beaten six-times major winner Iga Swiatek. 'I think for me, I'm just having a lot of fun playing and I'm really glad to be here,' Osaka said. 'She's (Tauson) really tough. I played her in Auckland this year and I had to stop halfway because I was injured. So, I'm really excited that I'm healthy and I hope that it's a good match for everyone that comes and watches.' Tauson was clinical in the opening set against Keys, converting both of her break point opportunities and serving it out in just over half an hour. Australian Open champion Keys dropped serve again early in the second, leaving the 22-year-old Tauson on course for just the second WTA 1000 semi of her career. In the men's tournament in Toronto, American second seed Taylor Fritz advanced to the semis with a 6-3 7-6(4) victory over Russian sixth seed Andrey Rublev. Wimbledon semi-finalist Fritz got off to a blistering start, winning six straight points and breaking his opponent's serve in his first return game. The 27-year-old maintained his momentum behind a dominant service performance and appeared poised to close out the match while serving at 5-4 in the second set. Rublev, however, mounted a comeback, saving a match point and converting his fourth break point to level the set before forcing a tiebreak, where Fritz finally secured the win. 'That whole game was so shaky for me,' Fritz said. 'It's weird because he was holding easy, I was holding easy. It felt so like calm and chill and all of a sudden I'm serving to be in the semis, the pressure of the game came out of nowhere. 'There's no way to sugarcoat it, it was a tight game. My brain kind of turned off. The only thing you can do is come back and win the set. I would be a lot more upset about what happened in the game if I lose the match. Winning makes it feel not as bad.' Next up for Fritz is compatriot and fourth seed Shelton, who beat Australian ninth seed De Minaur 6-3 6-4 to reach his first career Masters 1000 semi-final.
