SM
Tuesday, November 12
Upcoming predictions and previews

US Open redux? Osaka sees off Svitolina to raise chances of Williams final

:Headline: Result: US Open redux? Osaka sees off Svitolina to raise chances of Williams final: ID:347633: from db_amp
Osaka could face a US Open final rematch with Serena Williams.

Naomi Osaka extended her winning grand slam run to 12 matches with a dominant victory over Elina Svitolina in the quarter-finals of the Australian Open.

The US Open champion has taken the increase in expectation and attention in her stride and needed only an hour and 12 minutes to wrap up a 6-4 6-1 win against the sixth seed, who struggled with a neck problem.

Osaka could now face a rematch of the controversial New York final against Serena Williams, who takes on Karolina Pliskova in the second semi-final.

Speaking on court, the 21-year-old said: "I tried to be consistent, or as consistent as I can. She's a really great player. It's kind of unfortunate that she got injured. Playing against her even if she was injured was still really tough.

"I just had one goal, which was to try as hard as I can and not get angry, I think I did it really well so I'm very happy."

Osaka had survived three-set clashes with tricky duo Hsieh Su-wei and Anastasija Sevastova in the last two rounds and looked much more comfortable against the more conventional game of Svitolina.

The Ukrainian, looking to move beyond the last eight at a slam for the first time at the fourth attempt, began 2019 with the confidence from winning the biggest title of her career at the WTA Finals last October.

Svitolina broke Osaka when she served for the opening set at 5-3 but her second serve was taking a pounding and, although Osaka missed wildly on three set points, she converted her fourth.

The fourth seed's record in matches after winning the first set is astonishing – she has now won 58 straight dating back to 2016 – so Svitolina was clearly up against it.

And the Ukrainian simply could not find a foothold in the match. She took a medical time-out at 0-3 in the second set to have treatment to her neck and shoulder, an issue that had bothered her in the third round against Zhang Shuai, but there was no way back.

amp_article__347633 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2019-01-23 09:55:46:
html db last update - 2019-01-23 09:55:46 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html
Share this article now:
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool119112161528
2Manchester CityMan City117222213923
3Chelsea115422113819
4Arsenal115421812619
5Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest115421510519
6Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton115421915419
7Fulham115331613318
8Newcastle UnitedNewcastle115331311218
9Aston Villa115331717018
10Tottenham HotspurSpurs1151523131016
11Brentford115152222016
12Bournemouth114341515015
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd114341212015
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham113351319-612
15Leicester CityLeicester112451421-710
16Everton112451017-710
17Ipswich TownIpswich111551222-108
18Crystal Palace11146815-77
19Wolverhampton WanderersWolves111371627-116
20Southampton11119721-144
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .