By Richard Pagliaro | Thursday, June 20, 2019
Yulia Putintseva shocked Naomi Osaka, 6-2, 6-3, scoring her first win over a world No. 1 and opening the door for Ashleigh Barty to seize the top spot.
Photo credit: Getty Images
Naomi Osaka arrived in Birmingham seeking to find her footing on grass.
A precise Yulia Putintseva shocked Osaka, 6-2, 6-3, scoring her first career victory over a world No. 1—and putting the Australian Open champion's 21-week run at the top of tennis in peril.
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The 43rd-ranked Putintseva broke in six of Osaka's eight service games and played with poise down the stretch to close with command. Osaka suffered her third loss in her last six matches dropping to 22-7 on the season.
Winless in three prior meetings vs. world No. 1 players, Putintseva broke one of the game's most lethal servers twice in succession bursting out to a 5-0 lead today.
An error-prone Osaka could not find the court at the outset, but came back to win two games in a row before Putintseva closed the opening set. Osaka was her own worst enemy committing 23 unforced errors in the opener.
The pair traded breaks in four of the first six games of the second set.
Struggling to find the range and rhythm on serve, an out-of-sorts Osaka surrendered serve at love gifting Putintseva a 5-3 second-set lead.
The feisty Putintseva roared through 12 of the final 14 games sealing the biggest win of her career and opening the door for a change at the top.
Putintseva, who won her maiden career title at Nürnberg this season, will play Julia Goerges for a semifinal spot. Goerges rapped an ace down the middle that provoked a cloud of chalk wrapping a 6-4, 6-3 win over Evgeniya Rodina in style.
A disconsolate Osak did not meet with the media afterward.
Reigning Roland Garros champion Ashleigh Barty can surpass Osaka and become the first Australian woman to seize the No. 1 ranking since Hall of Famer Evonne Goolagong in 1976 by winning the Birmingham title.
The second-ranked Barty extended her winning streak to nine matches dismissing American Jennifer Brady, 6-3, 6-1, to charge into her sixth quarterfinal in eight events this year.
Next up for Barty is a quarterfinal vs. either former world No. 1 Venus Williams or sixth-seeded Wang Qiang.