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NOVAK DJOKOVIC OVERCOMES RAFAEL NADAL IN FRENCH OPEN CLASSIC TO REACH FINAL

Rafael Nadal was beaten for just the third time at the French Open as Novak Djokovic won an extraordinary semi-final on a night of sporting drama at Roland Garros.

The great Spaniard went into the contest having won 105 of his previous 107 matches on the Parisian clay, losing only to Robin Soderling in the fourth round in 2009 and Djokovic in the last eight six years ago.

He had won all 13 of his previous semi-finals but, in a 58th match between the pair that was on a par with almost any that came before, Djokovic found the answers to the greatest challenge in sport to win 3-6 6-3 7-6 (4) 6-2.

It is the world number one who will take on Stefanos Tsitsipas – winner of a five-set contest with Alexander Zverev earlier on Friday – in the final on Sunday, bidding for a 19th grand slam title and to become the first man in the Open era to win each title at least twice.

Nadal had been trying to claim the outright men’s record with 21 slam titles and went in as a clear, albeit narrow, favourite, particularly given his drubbing of Djokovic in the final last October.

The first five games were a near carbon copy of that match, with Nadal finding the answer to everything Djokovic could throw at him and moving into a 5-0 lead, but from there it swerved off in a completely different direction entirely.

Djokovic not only avoided the love set but pulled three games back, sowing a few seeds of doubt in Nadal’s mind before the Spaniard took his seventh set point.

Those doubts were evident as Djokovic moved into a 2-0 lead and then, after Nadal had broken back, a 4-2 advantage.

The next game summed up what makes contests between these two some of the best in all sport. The points were spellbinding, the athleticism mind-blowing, with both men not only trying to deploy their weapons but to prevent the other doing likewise.

Nadal had three chances to break back but was denied on each occasion, as he was two games later when Djokovic served for the set, the Spaniard missing a routine backhand on break point and paying the penalty.

There was no doubt Djokovic was in the ascendancy and yet this was Nadal on clay in Paris and, as the Serbian knows better than anyone having lost to him here seven times, there is no tougher challenge.

A Djokovic break for 3-2 in the third set was immediately snuffed out by Nadal but the effort of doing so took it out of the 35-year-old, who promptly dropped his serve to love.

Djokovic survived another long game to hold for 5-3 and was at 30-0 trying to serve it out but one moment of hesitation was all it took to give Nadal hope and back stormed the champion with four points in a row.

Both men were showing understandable signs of fatigue but somehow they engineered even more outlandish points, with Nadal fighting off break points to hold for 6-5 and then creating a set point only for Djokovic to save with a precision drop shot.

As in last year’s final, the tactic had been more foe than friend but, at the biggest moment of the match thus far, it came to his rescue.

The tie-break was nip and tuck until Nadal, normally the most solid of volleyers, put one long at 4-3 that would have left a club player with head in hands.

Djokovic was not so charitable and, for just the fifth time at Roland Garros, Nadal lost a second set in a match.

The biggest cheer of the night came with the announcement that the fans, who had been expected to be ejected to comply with Paris’ 11pm curfew, were in fact being allowed to stay.

Nadal made a statement with a break to start the fourth set but it was Djokovic who was in control of more of the points and, for once, the champion had no answer

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NAOMI OSAKA WITHDRAWS FROM FRENCH OPEN AMID MEDIA BOYCOTT HOWLER

Naomi Osaka has announced that she will be withdrawing from the French Open because of the furore caused by her boycott of media duties.

The world number two won her opening match against Patricia Maria Tig on Sunday but her decision not to take part in press conferences or interviews has been the biggest talking point of the tournament.

The grand slams reacted strongly to Osaka’s move, releasing a joint statement on Sunday that threatened her with potential disqualification and a ban from future tournaments should she not reconsider.

Osaka, who cited mental health reasons, wrote on Twitter: “Hey everyone, this isn’t a situation I ever imagined or intended when I posted a few days ago.

“I think now the best thing for the tournament, the other players and my well-being is that I withdraw so that everyone can get back to focusing on the tennis going on in Paris.”

Osaka said she had suffered bouts of depression since winning her first slam title at the US Open in 2018 and that talking to the media triggered anxiety.

“I never wanted to be be a distraction and I accept that my timing was not ideal and my message could have been clearer,” she continued on Twitter. “More importantly, I would never trivialise mental health or use the term lightly.

“The truth is that I have suffered long bouts of depression since the US Open in 2018 and I have had a really hard time coping with that.

“Anyone that knows me knows I’m introverted, and anyone that has seen me at the tournaments will notice that I’m often wearing headphones as that helps dull my social anxiety.

“Though the tennis press has always been kind to me (and I wanna apologise especially to all the cool journalists who I may have hurt), I am not a natural public speaker and get huge waves of anxiety before I speak to the world’s media.”

Osaka’s sister Mari attempted to explain more about her sibling’s stance with a post on the website Reddit, highlighting her feelings of vulnerability, but then deleted her words and replaced them with an apology, saying she felt she had made things worse.

Osaka’s Twitter post continued: “So here in Paris I was already feeling vulnerable and anxious so I thought it was better to exercise self-care and skip the press conferences.

“I announced it pre-emptively because I do feel like the rules are quite outdated in parts and I wanted to highlight that.

“I wrote privately to the tournament apologising and saying that I would be more than happy to speak with them after the tournament as the slams are intense.

“I’m gonna take some time away from the court now, but when the time is right I really want to work with the Tour to discuss ways we can make things better for the players, press and fans.”

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NAOMI OSAKA FACES EVICTION FROM FRENCH OPEN OVER MEDIA BOYCOTT

Naomi Osaka has been warned she faces being thrown out of the French Open should she continue her media boycott.

The four-time grand slam champion announced on social media ahead of the tournament that she would not be doing any press at Roland Garros, citing mental health reasons.

It has not gone down well with the tournament and drew an unusually punchy joint statement from the four grand slams, who threatened Osaka with severe sanctions should she not reconsider her stance.

The statement said: “We have advised Naomi Osaka that, should she continue to ignore her media obligations during the tournament, she would be exposing herself to possible further code of conduct infringement consequences.

“As might be expected, repeat violations attract tougher sanctions including default from the tournament and the trigger of a major offence investigation that could lead to more substantial fines and future grand slam suspensions.”

Osaka has been fined $15,000 (approximately €12,300) for refusing to fulfil her media commitments after a 6-4 7-6 (4) first-round victory over Patricia Maria Tig.

The statement continued: “The Roland Garros teams asked her to reconsider her position and tried unsuccessfully to speak with her to check on her well-being, understand the specifics of her issue and what might be done to address it on site.

“The mental health of players competing in our tournaments and on the tours is of the utmost importance to the grand slams. We, individually and collectively, have significant resources dedicated to player well-being.

“In order to continue to improve, however, we need engagement from the players to understand their perspective and find ways to improve their experiences.

“A core element of the grand slam regulations is the responsibility of the players to engage with the media, whatever the result of their match, a responsibility which players take for the benefit of the sport, the fans and for themselves.
“As a sport, there is nothing more important than ensuring no player has an unfair advantage over another, which unfortunately is the case in this situation if one player refuses to dedicate time to participate in media commitments while the others all honour their commitments.
“Finally, all grand slams remain committed to continually reviewing and discussing opportunities, together with the tours and the players, to improve every aspect of the player experience, including with the media.

“But we consider this is only ever achieved through respectful and constructive discussions.”

Despite her media snub, Osaka did take part in a short and rather awkward on-court interview for the few hundred fans allowed into Court Philippe Chatrier following her victory over Romanian Tig.

“I’m very glad that I won,” said the 23-year-old, who skipped the tournament last year after winning her third slam title at the US Open.

“It’s a very beautiful court. I’ve only played two matches here, one was before the roof and one is right now. Hopefully I’ll keep it going.”

Regarding her movement on clay, Osaka, who next meets another Romanian in Ana Bogdan, said: “I would say it’s a work in progress. Hopefully the more I play, the better I’ll get.”

Petra Kvitova, a semi-finalist last year, saved a match point in the second set against Greet Minnen before coming through 6-7 (3) 7-6 (5) 6-1.

Angelique Kerber has won titles at the other three slams but her chances of completing the set appear remote after a third successive first-round loss.

The German, twice a quarter-finalist in Paris, was beaten 6-2 6-4 by a very in-form player in qualifier Anhelina Kalinina, who has now won her last 14 matches.

American Danielle Collins, who is back on tour after undergoing surgery for endometriosis, battled to a 6-2 4-6 6-4 victory over China’s Wang Xiyu.

Russian Elena Vesnina, meanwhile, defeated Olga Govortsova 6-1 6-0 in her first singles match at a grand slam since taking maternity leave in 2018.

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RAFAEL NADAL SAVES MATCH POINT EN ROUTE BARCELONA OPEN VICTORY

Rafael Nadal saved match point in a pulsating final against Stefanos Tsitsipas to win his 12th Barcelona Open title.

Nadal had only lost one set in 11 previous finals in Catalonia and had never lost a clay-court final having held a match point.

He had two in the second set but a combination of some uncharacteristic misses from the Spaniard and brilliant play from his opponent helped Tsitsipas turn the match around.

The Greek had his own chance to clinch back-to-back titles having won his maiden Masters crown in Monte-Carlo last week when he held match point at 5-4 in the decider.

But Nadal dug deep, broke the Tsitsipas serve in the next game and battled his way to a 6-4 6-7 (6) 7-5 victory in three hours and 38 minutes.

Tsitsipas, who recovered from two sets down to beat the Spaniard at the Australian Open, made a brilliant start to the match, striking winners apparently at will, breaking Nadal’s serve and pushing for a second break.

But the Spaniard, as he has done so many times before, weathered the storm, began sewing doubt into his opponent’s mind by relentlessly targeting his backhand and turned the match around.

He won four games in a row from 2-4 to take the opening set, and then again came from a break down in the second set after Tsitsipas had regrouped well.

That took him to the brink of victory on the court named after him but Tsitsipas showed his own mettle to stay in the contest, recovering from 15-40 at 4-5 with two fine points, including a lovely touch volley winner on the second.

A topsy-turvy tie-break saw Nadal lead 4-2 then save two set points from 4-6 only to serve a double fault at 6-6 that helped Tsitsipas clinch it.

The third was serve dominated until 4-5, when Nadal wobbled on his own delivery, but ultimately it was the Spaniard who proved just the tougher.

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ROGER FEDERER RETURNS TO ACTION WITH WIN OVER BRITAIN ‘S DAN EVANS

Roger Federer toasted his comeback after 14 months battling knee injuries by battling past Britain’s Dan Evans 7-6 (10/8) 3-6 7-5 at the Qatar Open.

Swiss great Federer was forced to grind all the way by his recent training partner Evans, with the 30-year-old from Birmingham even saving a match point.

But 39-year-old Federer was not to be denied victory on his big return, having fought off two knee surgeries to return to ATP tour action.

The 20-time Grand Slam champion had not played since his straight-sets defeat to Novak Djokovic in the 2020 Australian Open.

Federer mixed signs of rust with moments of magic, eventually just pulling home to book a quarter-final meeting with Georgia’s Nikoloz Basilashvili.

The three-time Qatar champion was handed a bye to the second round and a clash with Evans, who battled past French veteran Jeremy Chardy in the opening round.

Evans, 30, had lost all three of his previous career meetings with Federer but had taken a set each time and was banking on being a different proposition due to his improvement during Federer’s time away.

Federer showed few signs of rust in an entertaining opening set in which neither player gave his opponent much of a chance behind his respective first serve.

Pushed into a tie-break, it looked like the Swiss star who would falter first, a pair of uncharacteristic errors helping Evans win four points in a row to establish a 4-2 lead.

But the favourite proved he had lost none of his nerve, fighting back to level then taking advantage of his third set point opportunity with a sweeping backhand pass down the line to take the tie-break 10-8.

Evans looked a little more wobbly on his own serve at the start of the second set but managed to survive and pounced on a series of errors from Federer in the fourth game of the set, seizing his first break-point opportunity to go 3-1 in front.

Federer rallied but Evans proved equal to the challenge, looking confident from the back of the court as he served out to take the second set 6-3 and take the match into a decider.

Evans dug out a fine service hold to make it 3-3 in the final set, before Federer fended off two break points in the next game.

Federer forced a match point with Evans serving to stay in the contest, only for the Brit to hold under major pressure and continue the intriguing battle.

At the last however, Federer was able to pull away – breaking Evans to seal the set and the match.

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NOVAK DJOKOVIC CRUSHES DANIIL MEDVEDEV TO LAND NINTH AUSTRALIAN OPEN

Novak Djokovic remains the king of Melbourne Park after clinching a ninth Australian Open title with a comfortable victory over Daniil Medvedev.

The world number one had never been beaten in a final at his most successful tournament, but that record seemed to be under considerable threat given the form of his opponent, who went into his second grand slam final on a run of 20 successive victories.

But Djokovic gave another reminder of what makes him one of the greatest exponents the sport has ever seen with a relentless display of baseline hitting to win 7-5 6-2 6-2.

The victory brought him a third successive title in Melbourne and an 18th slam crown overall, moving him to within two of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal at the top of the men’s all-time standings.

This was one of the more remarkable of those 18, with Djokovic looking down and out after sustaining an abdominal injury in the third round against Taylor Fritz and battling through matches against Milos Raonic and Alexander Zverev.

He declared himself back in peak condition after beating Aslan Karatsev in straight sets in the semi-finals, which proved to be bad news for Medvedev.

The Russian’s strengths are very similar to those of Djokovic, with the 25-year-old a relentless hitter from the baseline, particularly on the backhand side, and a tremendous athlete for his 6ft 6in frame.

He had won three of his last four matches against Djokovic, including in straight sets at the ATP Finals in London in November, but he quickly discovered the Serbian in Melbourne is a different animal.

Djokovic set his stall out by racing to a 3-0 lead, only for Medvedev to fight back and level.

The world number one’s serve has been particularly impressive this tournament, though, arguably keeping him in it when he was struggling physically, and he held comfortably from there before breaking to take the first set.

Tactically it was a very smart performance from the top seed, who was making Medvedev play from the centre of the court, particularly off his forehand, and drawing the errors he was looking for.

Djokovic’s consistent excellence has the effect of making the court seem smaller and smaller for his opponent, and Medvedev started to over press, aiming closer to the lines and missing.

A break of serve to start the second set was swiftly snuffed out by a run of four games in a row for Djokovic, and even smashing a racket did nothing to alleviate Medvedev’s frustration.

Another break of serve handed Djokovic the second set, and the match was all but over when Medvedev, missing only the steam coming out of his ears, dumped a volley into the net to trail 2-0 in the third.

Medvedev had fought back from two sets down to push Nadal to a fifth set in his previous slam final at the US Open in 2019, but that was never on the cards here and Djokovic took his first match point with an overhead.

With his ninth title, the 33-year-old becomes only the second man after Nadal in Paris to win a slam more than eight times.

Djokovic’s success also continues the unprecedented dominance of himself, Federer and Nadal, who have now won 15 of the last 16 slam titles despite all being well into their 30s.

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STEFANOS TSITSIPAS SENDS RAFAEL NADAL OUT OF AUSTRALIAN OPEN IN A DRAMATIC COME BACK WIN

Rafael Nadal’s latest bid for grand slam history was ended by a sensational comeback from Stefanos Tsitsipas at the Australian Open.

The 34-year-old Spaniard, bidding to overhaul Roger Federer’s haul of 20 major titles, was two sets up and well on course for a semi-final against Daniil Medvedev.

Nadal was threatening to roll over the 22-year-old from Greece, just as he had in the last four in Melbourne two years ago when he won 6-2 6-4 6-0.

But this time Tsitsipas had other ideas as he completed a stunning 3-6 2-6 7-6 (4) 6-4 7-5 victory to become only the second man, along with Fabio Fognini, to come from two sets down to beat Nadal at a grand slam.

Tsitsipas somehow clung on to edge the third set, even though Nadal dropped just one point on serve in taking it to a tie-break.

It was the first set Nadal had dropped at the tournament, and brought to an end a run of 35 consecutive sets won at grand slams.

Tsitsipas had his tail up and forced his first break – and the first by either player in two hours – for 5-4 before serving out and levelling the match.

The decider went with serve, with Tsitsipas firing down four aces to win one game, until three unforced Nadal errors gifted his opponent the break for 6-5.

Ever the fighter, Nadal saved two match points but Tsitsipas nailed the third to complete a landmark victory.

“I’m speechless, I have no words to describe what just happened,” said Tsitsipas on court afterwards.

“It’s an unbelievable feeling to be able to fight at such a level and give my all on court.

“I started very nervous but I don’t know what happened after the third set. I flew like a little bird.

“Everything was working for me and the emotions are indescribable. I’m really happy with the attitude I showed on court.”

Defeat meant Nadal will have to wait another year in his attempt to become the first man to win every grand slam title twice in the Open era.

In-form world number four Medvedev won the all-Russian clash with Andrey Rublev to reach his first Melbourne semi-final.

Medvedev, a former US Open finalist, stretched his current winning streak to 19 matches with a 7-5 6-3 6-2 victory against his ATP Cup team-mate.

Rublev, ranked eight in the world, was clearly struggling with the heat as the match wore on and is still yet to take a set off his friend and compatriot in five meetings.

Medvedev, who won the ATP Finals in London at the end of last year and went unbeaten through Russia’s ATP Cup triumph, needed treatment on his thigh after the match.

He said: “I started cramping in my quad. I saw he was cramping also so I tried not to show it. But I couldn’t really move my left leg at the end.

“It was super tough, we had some unbelievable rallies. I think I’m one of the first players to make Andrey tired on court so I’m quite happy about it.

“To play my friend? It’s never easy but we’re all super competitive. It was one of the best matches I’ve played lately. To beat him in three sets without a tie-break, I’m very happy about that.”

There was also good news for Australian Open organisers after it was confirmed that fans will be allowed back into Melbourne Park on Thursday after the city’s five-day coronavirus lockdown comes to an end.

The crowd will be capped at 7,477 for each session, which is approximately 50 per cent capacity in the Rod Laver Arena.

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AUSTRALIAN OPEN: KAROLINA MUCHOVA STUN ASHLEIGH BARTY TO CLINCH SEMI-FINAL SPOT.

Karolina Muchova stunned world number one Ashleigh Barty with a sensational comeback sparked by a medical time-out to progress into the Australian Open semi-finals following a 1-6 6-3 6-2 win.

The 25th seed looked out of sorts in a first set which lasted only 24 minutes and at this stage it seemed the home favourite sealing her place in the last four was a formality.

A medical time-out proved the catalyst for the Czech to wrestle back some momentum and, after she levelled, it was Barty who lost her radar and a catalogue of unforced errors saw hopes of a maiden Australian Open victory ended.

For Muchova her remarkable tournament continues with Karolina Pliskova and Elise Mertens already dispatched but this victory tops the lot and seals a first ever appearance at the last four of a grand slam

In her on-court interview, the 24-year-old semi-finalist reflected on her medical time-out and said: “I started to feel a bit lost at the end of the first set.

“My head was spinning so I took a break and it helped me. I tried to get back and play a bit faster and it worked well.

“They checked my (blood) pressure, I was a bit lost and spinning. They cooled me down with ice and it helped me.”

French Open winner Barty refused to be drawn into a debate about the long break in play when she attended her press conference.

She insisted: “If she wasn’t within the rules, the physios and the doctors would have said so. That’s the laws of our game, is that we have those medical time-outs for cases that are needed. Obviously she needed that today. Completely within the rules for her to take that.

“From my point of view, I’ve played a lot of matches where there have been medical timeouts. I’ve taken medical timeouts myself before, so that shouldn’t be a massive turning point in the match.

“I was disappointed that I let that become a turning point. I’m experienced enough now to be able to deal with that.”

Barty had got the better of the Czech in their previous meeting at the US Open in 2018 and signalled her intentions with a break in her opponent’s first game in temperatures of 25 degrees in Melbourne.

Muchova could not find her range and a string of wayward shots were followed by a double fault to put her on the verge of a bagel following 16 minutes of play at the Rod Laver Arena.

It was avoided but Barty secured a routine first set by a 6-1 scoreline before the tide turned in unexpected fashion following a medical time-out.

The world number 27, in only her second ever grand slam quarter-final, went off for a long period after a rare winner and when she returned it was now her Australian opponent who could not land any shots.

Five of the next six games in the set went the way of Muchova to level proceedings with Barty hitting 18 unforced errors.

Momentum was firmly with the underdog and another break at the start of the decider increased the pressure on the home favourite, who was seeing hopes of becoming the first Aussie woman since Wendy Turnbull in 1980 to reach the final of the Australian Open fade fast.

With the crowd not due to return until Thursday after a five-day lockdown for the state of Victoria ends, Barty had to find support from within and yet let another game slip despite nerves getting the better of the duo with the finish line in sight.

Serving for the match, Muchova sealed her passage into the semi-finals with an ace to claim one of the best victories of her career.

Jennifer Brady clinched a second consecutive last four appearance at a major with a 4-6 6-2 6-1 win over fellow American Jessica Pegula in the quarter-finals.

The Fed Cup team-mates produced an entertaining contest with breaks aplenty in addition to various long rallies.

Brady, who reached the US Open semi-finals in August, recovered from losing the first set and being broken in the first game of the decider to fight back and knock out her good friend.

She said: “I know we will be having a lot more tough battles. Some may go her way, some may go mine. Luckily today it went mine and I am really happy to be moving onto the semi-finals.”

World number 61 Pegula’s fantastic journey in the tournament came to its conclusion despite a strong start where she won 12 consecutive points to seal the opener.

After 22nd seed Brady began to channel her growing frustration, winners became more frequent and three breaks secured the second set.

When Pegula broke at the start of the third, the balance of the tie looked set to turn once more, but the player ranked 24 in the world responded in style to triumph in the next six games and set up a semi-final date with 25th seed Muchova.

The winner will make a grand slam final for the first time where they will meet one of either Naomi Osaka or Serena Williams.

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SERENA WILLIAMS AND NAOMI OSAKA SET FOR DRAMATIC AUSTRALIAN OPEN SEMI-FINAL

Serena Williams set up a blockbuster Australian Open semi-final with Naomi Osaka after producing her best performance of the tournament to defeat Simona Halep 6-3, 6-3 on Tuesday.

The 39-year-old American went toe-to-toe with the Romanian second seed over 80 engrossing minutes on Rod Laver Arena before she was finally able to move to within two victories of a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam title.

The victory serves as a measure of revenge for the last time the pair played when Halep defeated Williams in the 2019 Wimbledon final.

Williams, who mixed 24 winners with 33 unforced errors over the contest, has not won a major since her seventh Australian Open triumph in 2017, losing four successive major finals since then.

The third of those four defeats came against Osaka in the 2018 US Open final, so Williams will have another shot at revenge.

“Definitely think this is the best match I have played this tournament, for sure,” said Williams after reaching her 40th Grand Slam semi-final.

“Obviously I had to be going up against the number two in the world, so I knew I had to do better, and that’s what I did and I’m excited.”

For Halep, who reached the semi-finals last year and was losing finalist in 2018, it was back to the drawing board as she looks to add to her two Grand Slam titles at the French Open and Wimbledon.

Williams will need to deliver a similarly impressive display when she faces Osaka, who maintained her bid for fourth major title after crushing Hsieh Su-wei 6-2, 6-2 earlier in the day.

Osaka is aiming to win the Australian Open immediately after claiming the US Open for a second time – she previously achieved the feat in 2018 and 2019 – and her win over Hsieh was markedly easier than their last meeting at Melbourne Park.

Osaka had a torrid time against Hsieh in 2019, having to come back from a set and a break down on the way to claiming the championship.

But the 23-year-old Japanese star had no such problems in Tuesday’s match inside Rod Laver Arena as she dominated from start to finish to wrap up victory in 66 minutes.

“Yeah, definitely really happy,” Osaka said on-court. “Really happy with how I played today. Every time I play her it’s a real battle and, despite the score, this was again a real battle today.”

Hsieh, 35, bowed out after a stellar tournament, having become the oldest women’s player to debut in a Grand Slam quarter-final in the professional era.

The improbable angles conjured by her double-handed, double-sided game had Osaka in some trouble early, but Hsieh was unable to convert any of the three break points she raised in the opening games of the first set.

Osaka quashed the first of them in the opening game with an ace down the ‘T’ before smashing Hsieh’s defences with a blazing backhand down the line to break to 3-1.

After holding on grimly through a 14-point game to hold serve, Osaka raised the pressure when Hsieh served to stay in the set at 5-2 and sealed it when the Taiwanese slapped a limp backhand wide.

Hsieh was soon in a tailspin, pounding a backhand well over the line to be broken to 2-0 as an emboldened Osaka raced to the finish.

While Osaka has suffered some major wobbles in the past, there was no hint of frustration despite Hsieh saving two match points. She bided her time to claim the win on the third when an overwhelmed Hsieh floated a sliced backhand long.

“I would say it makes me a bit more calm, realising that even when my back was against the wall, I still had chances,” said Osaka, who saved two match points in a cliffhanger against Garbine Muguruza in her previous match.

“Even today when I had two match points and she saved them … I was a bit more calm.”

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AUSTRALIAN OPEN: SERENA WILLIAMS, NAOMI OSAKA REACH QUARTER FINALS.

Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka both survived close battles to reach the quarter-finals of the Australian Open.

Third seed and title favourite Osaka saved two match points on her way to a 4-6 6-4 7-5 victory over last year’s runner-up Garbine Muguruza while Williams was a 6-4 2-6 6-4 winner against Aryna Sabalenka.

Seventh seed Sabalenka has been one of the form players of the last few months and many people have been waiting for the big-hitting Belarusian to make a grand slam breakthrough.

She fought back from 1-4 to draw level in the final set but Williams was just too strong in the end.

The 39-year-old, who is now again within touching distance of a record-equalling 24th grand slam singles title, said: “It felt good to kind of clutch that in the end and get through that.

“I just felt like even games that I lost, I was so close to winning. Not all games, but probably most of those games. I just needed to play better on the big points. I knew that I could. I still hadn’t reached my peak. I was like, ‘OK, Serena, you got this, just keep going’.”

Among Williams’ support camp is sister Venus and the 10th seed credited her sibling for keeping her calm.

“She’s really one of the only voices I hear,” said Serena. “I don’t know if I zone out and she’s the only one I hear. I know when I hear her voice, it just makes me calm and confident. I think there’s something about it that just makes me feel really good.”

Osaka hung on by the skin of her teeth against Muguruza, who was full of confidence after a strong start to the season.

The Spaniard led by a set and a break and held two match points at 5-3 in the deciding set only for Osaka, the 2019 champion in Melbourne, to pull through with a run of four games in a row.

Asked how she had dug herself out of trouble, the Japanese star said: “I’m not really sure, to be honest. I was just trying to fight for every point, then it sort of led me to win.

“On the first match point, I was just thinking that I didn’t hit a decent serve that entire game, so I should really focus on my serve. I feel like my serve stats were pretty good that set, so I was just telling myself to do better.

“Then on the second point, when the rally started, I just told myself not to push (the ball) but also don’t do something crazy and make a really bad unforced error.”

Osaka also credited a brief moment of temper for clearing her mind, saying: “I felt the entire match I was overthinking. There was a moment when I got angry and hit my racquet on the ground. I feel like I released a lot of the thoughts that I had. It just made me go more into instinct-based tennis.”

Osaka will next face the highly unconventional Hsieh Su-wei, who at 35 became the oldest player to reach a first slam quarter-final in the Open era with a 6-4 6-2 victory over Marketa Vondrousova.

Hsieh came close to beating Osaka at the Australian Open in 2019 and, asked what makes her challenging to play, the third seed said with a laugh: “Have you watched her play? It’s like, ‘What’?

“She’s one of those players that, for me, if it was a video game, I would want to select her character just to play as her. Because my mind can’t fathom the choices she makes when she’s on the court. It’s so fun to watch. It’s not fun to play, but it’s really fun to watch.”