Osaka scores straight-sets win at Tokyo Olympics in first match since French Open withdrawal
23-year-old Naomi Osaka is through to the second round of the singles event where she will meet Wimbledon quarter-finalist Viktorija Golubic
Ariake Tennis Park, Tokyo, Japan – July 23, 2021 – Naomi Osaka of Japan during training.
Copyright: AI / Reuters / Panoramic
- What happened: World No. 2 Naomi Osaka scored a 6-1, 6-4 win over China’s Saisai Zheng in the first round of the women’s singles event at the Tokyo Olympics on Saturday
- Why it matters: This was Osaka’s first match since her shocking withdrawal from Roland-Garros in May. At the time, Osaka had declared that she would not take part in the mandatory press conferences in Paris, Following her first-round win in Paris and a fine by the French Tennis Federation, Osaka decided to pull out of the French Open, and also skipped Wimbledon.
- Key stat: Osaka did not lose her serve even once during the one hour-28 minute encounter. The Japanese player, who lit the Olympic cauldron during the opening ceremony on Friday, faced six break points against her serve but saved one each time.
• Key stat #2: Osaka served six aces and zero double faults in the match, winning 76 percent of her first-serve points and 65% of her second-serve points.
• Other key information: With the exit of top seed Ashleigh Barty, Osaka is now the highest ranked player and among the top medal contenders at the Tokyo Olympics
• What next : Osaka will next meet Swiss Viktorija Golubic, who scored a 6-4, 6-1 win over María Camila Osorio Serrano
• Other key results so far:
Sorribes Tormo beat (1) Barty 6-4, 6-3
(3) Sabalenka beat Linette 6-2, 6-1
(5) Pliskova beat Cornet 6-1, 6-3
(7) Muguruza beat Kudermetova 7-5, 7-5
Alexandrova beat (12) Mertens 4-6, 6-4, 6-4
Giorgi beat (11) Brady 6-3, 6-2
Vesnina beat Ostapenko 6-4, 6-7, 6-4
• The draw for the women’s singles event at the Tokyo Olympics is updated live here at this link
• If you have further questions on related to the tennis event at the Tokyo Olympics, hopefully you can find that information here
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