Naomi Osaka's sharp serving and superior return game helped her past American Shelby Rogers 6-3 6-4 and move into the semi-finals of the U.S. Open on Tuesday as the Japanese continues her quest for a second title at Flushing Meadows.
Osaka broke at love to take a 5-3 lead in the first set where Rogers hit 16 unforced errors to Osaka's five and held serve to claim the set.
Osaka broke again early in the second set for a 2-1 lead and won the match when Rogers dumped a forehand into the net on match point for her 28th unforced error.
Despite the loss Rogers will hold her head high after the 27-year-old saved four match points to defeat Petra Kvitova to reach her first U.S. Open quarter-final.
Next up for Osaka is in-form American Jennifer Brady, who beat Kazakhstan's Yulia Putintseva in straight sets earlier in the day.
Brady overcomes jitters
Brady notched the biggest victory yet in her breakout run at the Open, beating Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan 6-3, 6-2 on Tuesday.
Seeded 28th, Brady said she was nervous at the start of her first career Grand Slam quarterfinal
The 25-year-old Brady trained as a youngster at the Evert Tennis Academy in Florida. She’s playing in her 13th Grand Slam event and is seeded in a major tournament for the first time.
Brady agreed it was easier to overcome her butterflies in the quarterfinal because there were no fans. She said she has struggled with doubt in her career while climbing slowly through the ranks.
“I’m pretty lucky to have just stuck to it, and just really continue to just play and practice and compete and get better,” she said. “Here I am today.”
Relying on a powerful serve and forehand, Brady has lost only 24 games in five matches.
