Naomi Osaka has never pretended that victory is always enjoyable. Sometimes victory simply means survival, which was evident in her latest performance at Washington, a match that she won more because of perseverance than timing.

"I think, you know, from my end, I felt like in the first set I had low energy, and I kept trying to pick myself up, but something was a little flat," Osaka said on Tennis Channel's YouTube channel. "In the second, I just wanted to give it my best shot, even though I felt like I wasn't playing too well. I wanted to do the best that I could in those circumstances."

Her words matched the scoreline. The third seed dropped serve early, got broken twice in the opener, and lost it 6-4. However, she barely managed to hold a first-serve percentage of 47.7% and won just five out of twelve break points that were available in two hours and eleven minutes.

This lack of consistency resulted in visible frustration for Osaka, as she threw her racket on the court and then kicked it away, which is highly unusual considering that Osaka remains calm under pressure. She then managed to secure victory in three sets.

"I feel, from my end, it was just a really rough match," she added during her on-court interview.

The remark is in line with her inconsistent service statistics and the reality that Cocciaretto, who ranks outside the top 70 players in the world, had already defeated Clara Tauson and Emma Navarro in that week.

Osaka's road to a first WTA title in over five years now runs through a player who has been quietly making history of her own.

Naomi Osaka Set to Face Alexandra Eala for a Semifinal Showdown

Osaka's next opponent, Alexandra Eala, the Filipina rising star, arrived in Washington ranked a career-high 28th and has already climbed further to 25 in the live rankings after reaching the semifinals.

Eala got there by eliminating Elina Svitolina 6-3, 6-4, marking her third semifinal appearance of the season.

"Yeah, I mean, I've never played Alex before, but obviously, I've seen some of her matches, and, you know, she's had an incredible year so far, so, honestly, playing her, I think, would be really fun for me just to, like, get that knowledge about how she plays. I think no matter who I play, it'll be very entertaining and also really tough," Osaka said.

Eala shared similar enthusiasm ahead of the clash, pointing to the respect she holds for her more experienced rival.

"She is, of course, such an accomplished player, and I think she's made waves on and off the tennis court for so many reasons. There's so much respect for her for that," Eala said.

The tournament's other semifinal will pit world No. 3 Jessica Pegula against fourth-seeded Diana Shnaider. Pegula reached her sixth semifinal of the year by beating Anna Kalinskaya 6-3, 7-5, while Shnaider advanced past fellow Russian Liudmila Samsonova 6-3, 6-4.

Which semifinal are you more excited to watch, Osaka vs Eala or Pegula vs Shnaider? Comment down.

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Written by

Utsav Gupta

Edited by

Utsav Gupta