Naomi Osaka politely rejected comparisons between herself and Emma Raducanu in the build-up to their round-of-16 match at the Mubadala Citi DC Open. “I won my second slam [straight] after I won my first,” she said when it was put to her that there are parallels in their bursts to stardom and recent struggles.
The four-times grand-slam champion and former world No1 made a fair argument, but she had few answers in the pair’s first meeting as Raducanu continued her promising run of form and raced to a 6-4, 6-2 victory.
Raducanu may have lost her pulsating contest with Aryna Sabalenka at Wimbledon, but she has carried the momentum from that performance against the world No1 into the hard-court season. A victory over Marta Kostyuk, the world No27, in the round of 32 was more impressive on paper in terms of ranking, but Osaka remains one of the most recognisable names in the sport, even if she has struggled for form of late. A formidable serving display was the backbone of Raducanu’s success, while she matched Osaka’s aggressive power-hitting from the baseline and yielded far fewer unforced errors.
The 22-year-old is now projected to rise to at least No39 in the rankings, which will restore her status as British No1. She will face Greece’s Maria Sakkari in the quarter-finals.
“I felt it was going to be a really difficult match. Naomi is so dangerous, and on the hard court she’s particularly comfortable, so I knew I was going to have to play really well and manage my own service games, which I’m really proud of how I did. I’m really pleased with how I handled the ball speed and the conditions here in DC,” Raducanu said.
“[The serving] was extremely important. If you float the second serve, Naomi is going to crunch it and I’d be behind in the point, so I had to trust my abilities on the second serve and I went for it and I just had one double fault in the final game. It was a really difficult match. Before I went on court I knew I had to play well.”
Washington DC has been a happy hunting ground for Raducanu, who is now a three-times quarter-finalist at this event. A sumptuous forehand winner down the line with her weight on her heels set the tone to hold her opening service game. She then capitalised at 2-2 on a sloppy service game from Osaka, who handed over the break with a double fault. Raducanu had no such issue and quickly consolidated that advantage with a hold to love before closing out the set comfortably with her customary scream of “Come on!”
It was a consummate performance from Raducanu, although Osaka’s five double faults and 16 unforced errors in the first set hardly aided the Japanese player’s cause. The 27-year-old’s talent is indisputable but a loss of form that coincided with her withdrawal from the French Open in 2021, citing mental health issues, has been marked. After reaching only one WTA Tour final the following year, Osaka took a hiatus in 2023 after becoming pregnant and has not surpassed the third round at a grand-slam event in seven attempts since returning to the tour at the start of last season.
Raducanu’s mettle will be tested again when she faces Sakkari, a finalist at the event in 2023
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Another poor service game at the start of the second set allowed Raducanu to break immediately. Osaka’s forehand created pressure in the following game, but the glimmers of old magic were too often marred by inconsistency. Raducanu did benefit from one moment of serious good fortune when facing break point at 2-1, though. A miscued forehand narrowly squeezed over the net and she managed to hold.
That escape proved decisive as Osaka stared forlornly towards her box after consecutive double faults and an unforced backhand error gifted Raducanu a second break of serve. Raducanu was unable to take her first two match points, but a fantastic serve staved off one more break point and she closed out victory in 1hr 21min.
After overcoming two tricky opponents, Raducanu faces another scrutinising test before her return to the US Open. Once ranked No3 in the world, Sakkari has tumbled down the rankings and needed a wild card to gain entry to the main draw. However, she stunned the second seed, Emma Navarro, on Wednesday and reached the final of the Washington Open in 2023.