Naomi Osaka stages a comeback to move forward in Miami Open

MIAMI: A determined Naomi Osaka fought back to defeat Yuliia Starodubtseva with a final scoreline of 3-6, 6-4, 6-3 in the first round of the Miami Open, securing her first victory since the Australian Open in January. 

Osaka dropped the first set and found herself trailing 4-2 in the second against the tournament qualifier. However, she managed to find her rhythm, rallying in front of an enthusiastic crowd on a bright, sunny day in South Florida. 

With this, Osaka expressed: “I knew that I wasn’t playing too well, but I thought, let me try to stay on the court as long as possible because I consider Miami my home.” 

Osaka had to withdraw from her third-round match at Melbourne Park due to an abdominal strain and made several errors in her first-round loss at Indian Wells earlier this month. 

She added: “(In Indian Wells) I was just over-hitting a lot, so I tried to use my legs. I was going to run into every corner if I had to, and we were going to have to play for three hours if she was going to beat me.” 

However, Osaka moved impressively and displayed her trademark power to secure her win. 

Highlights of the match 

The match shifted during a tense Osaka service game in the third set, where she saved two break points and hit an unreturnable serve to lead 4-1. 

She then served again on match point, and her opponent couldn’t return it, giving Osaka the hard-earned win in two hours and 28 minutes. 

The Japanese player will now face 24th seed  Liudmila Samsonova of Russia in the second round, with the two having each won one of their previous career meetings.