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Japanese tennis player Naomi Osaka produced a stunning display to defeat world number one Aryna Sabalenka 6-2, 7-6(7/2) on Sunday, booking her first-ever place in the Wimbledon quarter-finals.
The victory ended Sabalenka’s hopes of reaching a maiden Wimbledon final and gave Osaka revenge for her straight-sets defeat to the Belarusian in the fourth round of the French Open in June.
Seeded 14th, Osaka has not dropped a set in her four matches at this year’s Wimbledon and continues her resurgence under coach Tomasz Wiktorowski.
Credit: AFP
Speaking after the win, the four-time Grand Slam champion described the triumph on Centre Court as especially meaningful.
“For me, this court is so special. This is the first match I’ve won on this court. It means a lot,” she said.
Osaka also revealed that her mother’s homemade Japanese meals have been a major source of motivation throughout the tournament.
The 28-year-old dominated the opening set with powerful baseline hitting before holding her nerve in the second-set tie-break to end Sabalenka’s remarkable run of 21 consecutive Grand Slam tie-break victories.
Sabalenka, who had reached the Wimbledon semi-finals in each of the previous three editions, struggled to cope with Osaka’s aggressive play and was unable to recover after falling behind.
Osaka will now face Karolína Muchová in the quarter-finals, with a place in the Wimbledon semi-finals at stake.
