Osaka overpowers Hsieh in Australian Open quarterfinals
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Naomi Osaka had little trouble today in advancing to the semifinals at the Australian Open.
Osaka earned her 19th victory in a row by overpowering Hsieh Suwei 6-2, 6-2, and will next meet the winner of the quarterfinal match between Serena Williams and No. 2seeded Simona Halep, scheduled for later in the day.
“Normally I never look at my draw,” Osaka said. “But everyone has told me about my draw here, so I kind of had no choice but to know who my next opponent is. It’s definitely going to be really fun.”
Seeded third, Osaka reached 122 mph on her serve against Hsieh. She hit seven aces, lost only two points on her first serve and was never broken.
Osaka also played excellent defense, such as in the final game, when she raced forward to chase down a drop shot, flicking a backhand cross-court for a winner.
At 35, Hsieh was the oldest woman to make her Grand Slam quarterfinal debut in the professional era. But Osaka wasn’t fazed by
Hsieh’s flat, deceptive twohanded strokes from both sides, pounding forehand winners into both corners.
Hsieh said Osaka is a threat to win the championship.
“She always can go all the way,” Hsieh said. “She just needs to play her game and stay calm. She’s a great player.”
Osaka’s winning streak includes a U.S. Open title in September for her third Grand Slam championship. The streak also includes her fourthround win last week, when she saved two match points and swept the final four games to overtake Garbine Muguruza.
“It makes me a bit more calm, knowing that my back was severely against the wall,” Osaka said.
On the other side of the draw, top-ranked Ash Barty moved into the quarterfinals for the third straight year by beating Shelby Rogers 6-3, 64 on Monday night.
Barty lost in the semifinals last year to eventual champion Sofia Kenin and didn’t play another major tournament in 2020 after deciding to stay in Australia during the COVID19 pandemic.
She had two match points in the eighth game of the second set but made four consecutive errors. Rogers capitalized to break and then hold and force Barty to again serve for the match.
Barty made no mistakes the second time when she held at love to close it out. Barty is aiming to be the first Australian woman since 1978 to win the Australian title. She will next play No. 25 Karolina Muchova.
Earlier Monday, Rafael Nadal moved closer to a men’s-record 21st Grand Slam trophy by overwhelming No. 16 Fabio Fognini 6-3, 6-4, 62.
Nadal’s next opponent will be No. 5 Stefanos Tsitsipas.