Naomi Osaka registers maiden Top-20 victory on clay after Marta Kostyuk drubbing in Italian Open 2R
Naomi Osaka continued her impressive run at the 2024 Italian Open by qualifying for the third round. This is her best performance in Rome since 2019 when she played her only quarterfinal at the WTA-1000 tournament.
Naomi Osaka faced No. 19 seed Marta Kostyuk in the second round of the Italian Open on May 9. The Japanese star made a blistering start to the match and raced to a 4-0 lead. Kostyuk managed to pull back things a little, but the early breaks were enough for Osaka to seal the first set.
In the second set, Osaka broke Kostyuk thrice to complete a perfect demolition job and notch a monumental straight-set 6-3, 6-2 win. The result helped the former World No. 1 tick off a few milestones. First of all, this was the first time she had managed to win back-to-back matches on the clay court since the 2019 French Open, where she reached the third round.
Secondly and more importantly, Osaka's win over Marta Kostyuk, currently ranked World No. 20, is her maiden victory over a player ranked in the top-20 WTA Ranking. Before this match, the Japanese had lost eight matches against the top 20 opponents on clay courts in her career.
Naomi Osaka might be among the most successful women active on the WTA Tour, but she has not found success on either of the natural surfaces in her career. All four of her Grand Slam titles (Australian Open x2, US Open x2) and two WTA 1000 titles (2018 Indian Wells Open and 2019 China Open) came on hard courts.
The World No. 173 has not reached a WTA Tour final on natural surfaces, with her best performances at Roland Garros and Wimbledon Championships being multiple third-round appearances.
Naomi Osaka to face Daria Kasatkina in Italian Open 3R
Naomi Osaka will have a chance to improve her record on clay courts when she faces No. 10 Daria Kasatkina in the third round of the 2024 Italian Open on May 12. The 26-year-old will fancy her chances against the Russian after dominating performances in her first two matches, in which she did not drop a set.
Daria Kasatkina will enter the contest after a comfortable win against German veteran Tatjana Maria in her second-round match. The last and only meeting between Osaka and Kasatkina came at the 2018 Indian Wells Open, where the former emerged victorious to win her maiden WTA-1000 title.
Naomi Osaka entered Rome after notching her first clay court win of the year at the Madrid Open. She has won 11 matches on the WTA Tour so far this season.