By Richard Pagliaro | @TennisNow | Wednesday, June 12, 2024

 

Former No. 1 Naomi Osaka was nearly untouchable on serve charging into her first grass-court quarterfinal in six years at the Libéma Open.

Photo credit: Miami Open/Hard Rock Stadium

Naomi Osaka calls herself a student of the sport.

The former No. 1 is proving to be a fast learner on lawn.

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Osaka rode her stinging serve into her first grass-court quarterfinal in six years with a 6-2, 6-2 sweep of Dutch wild card Suzan Lamens in 's-Hertogenbosch.

It is Osaka's second quarterfinal of the season after her run to the last eight in Doha and her second career grass-court quarterfinal coming six years after she reached the 2018 Nottingham quarterfinals falling to Ash Barty.

Though she served only 39 percent, Osaka was nearly untouchable when she landed her first deliver. Osaka won 15 of 17 first-serve points and pumped nine aces against one double fault in a 54-minute rout.

Afterward, Osaka said she has two goals for grass season: Improve match-by-match and win a grass-court title.

"I’d say I felt more comfortable today than the day before," Osaka said in her on-court interview. "Hopefully, with every match and every practice I can continue to get better.
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"Hopefully to win a [grass] tournament [is my goal], but that’s a long-term project I just hope that I can continue to play well and stay healthy."

The victory vaults Osaka into a blockbuster showdown of Grand Slam champions vs. Bianca Andreescu.



Former world No. 4 Andreescu stopped sixth-seeded Yue Yuan 6-4, 6-4.

In their lone prior meeting, Osaka out-dueled fellow former US Open champion Andreescu 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 in the 2019 Beijing quarterfinals.

Andreescu is playing just her second tournament of the year following her French Open third-round run.