Osaka Serves Up a Comeback: China Open Sees Star Player Bounce Back from Bad Streak
Naomi Osaka Advances to Third Round at China Open Tennis Tournament
The China Open tennis tournament, held in Beijing, saw 2019 champion Naomi Osaka secure a spot in the third round after winning her second-round women’s singles match.
Osaka, who faced 21st seed Yulia Putintseva from Kazakhstan, initially lost the first set 3-6 but made a comeback, winning the next set 6-4 and the final set 6-2.
Osaka, a former world No. 1, was on the verge of losing 22 consecutive matches if she had dropped the first set. Reflecting on her win, she stated, “I heard about it from my agent and really wanted to stop it. I wanted to show myself that even if I can’t play as perfectly as I wanted, I can still fight and win.”
Other notable players who advanced to the next round include second seed Jessica Pegula and fourth seed Cori Gauff, both from the United States. At just 20 years old, Gauff secured her 46th WTA 1000 hard court event win, tying the record held by Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki for the most wins among women under the age of 21.
In the first round of doubles, Miyu Kato and Nadia Kichenok from Ukraine won in straight sets and advanced to the second round. However, Shuko Aoyama, Eri Hozumi, Makoto Ninomiya, and Ichiru Xu from China were eliminated.
