Osaka Holds Her Ground in Osaka: Japanese Player Narrowly Defeats Lamens and Advances to Quarterfinals

As the top seed in Osaka, Naomi Osaka won her second match of the tournament to reach the quarterfinals.

Ranked 16th in the world, Osaka aimed to build on her opening victory against Wakana Sonobe (6-0, 6-4) at the WTA 250 tournament in Osaka. The Japanese player, who is the number one seed in her home tournament, faced Suzan Lamens, who had upset Emiliana Arango (6-1, 6-2) in the first round.

This match was within reach for the four-time Grand Slam champion, but it was far from easy for her. Trailing 4-2 in the first set, Osaka saw the Dutch player serve for the set at 5-4 but managed to break back at the crucial moment before winning the tie-break to take the lead after an hour of play.

However, Lamens, ranked 57th in the world, did not back down and took a three-game lead early in the second set. This time, she maintained her advantage and leveled the match at one set apiece.

Boosted by her home crowd, Osaka, who recently reached the finals of the WTA 1000 in Montreal and the semifinals of the US Open, played with confidence and took control in the decisive third set, leading 5-0.

Despite a brief surge of pride from Lamens, the Dutch player was too far behind, and it was the Japanese player who ultimately secured the hard-fought victory (7-6, 3-6, 6-2 in 2 hours and 19 minutes). This marks Osaka’s second win in as many matches against her opponent.

Osaka now advances to the quarterfinals, where she will face Jaqueline Cristian. The Romanian, who struggled early in her match against Jessica Bouzas Maneiro, ultimately overturned the Spaniard in three sets (0-6, 6-4, 6-2 in 1 hour and 57 minutes).