Australian Open: Naomi Osaka moves into the final against Williams

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No shadow, only light: Naomi Osaka

Photo: Darrian Traynor / Getty Images

Ready to go

: Serena Williams was right in this highly anticipated semi-final with the first point.

Osaka looked nervous at first, lost the first service game and was quickly 2-0 down.

Then followed the second service game of the Japanese, which she sealed with an ace.

It seemed so she wanted to say: Ok, I'm ready, let's go!

Result

: Naomi Osaka wins the semi-finals of the Australian Open against 6: 3, 6: 4.

In the final on Saturday, the 23-year-old will face the winner from the semi-finals of the tournament surprises Karolina Muchova and Jennifer Brady.

Don't call it a revenge

: No preview of this duel came without a reference to the last Grand Slam duel between the two of them in the final of the 2018 US Open: The then 20-year-old Osaka had won as surprisingly as she deserved, but their success was overshadowed by an ongoing argument between Williams and referee Carlos Ramos.

Neither of them wanted to see an opportunity for revenge in the current semifinals.

"I think we both drew a line," Williams said.

Can go on:

After its delayed start, Osaka failed very little.

On the contrary: With strong serves close to the 200 km / h mark and hard, precise hits, Osaka forced the actual attack player Williams on the defensive.

16 avoidable errors in the first round were the result.

Osaka risked a lot, after 38 minutes she decided the first set with a forehand cross in the corner.

Superstition

: Rafael Nadal is the king of rituals and obsessions, but Naomi Osaka has now also developed a quirk.

She avoids stepping on the lines.

In Melbourne she even stays away from the big, white letters "Melbourne" on one side of the square.

When and why did it start?

She doesn't know herself.

However, Osaka is in good company with her quirk.

Maria Sharapova, Justine Henin, John McEnroe and, you guessed it, Rafael Nadal are also said to be afraid of an unhappy white line.

Superstition, Greek way:

After their success, Osaka was in a chatty mood.

She had a story to tell, she said in her interview with the winners: For the past three weeks, she had been eating Japanese the day before a match.

But this time she chose Greek.

In the morning she saw that Stefanos Tsitsipas had beaten Rafael Nadal.

"And I thought, maybe that's a sign, maybe I should always eat Greek now."

2nd movement

: It began with a different accidental.

This time it was Osaka who immediately took the serve from Williams and quickly took a 2-0 lead.

Again and again the chance of a third sentence flashed.

The spectators who were admitted to a hotel at the airport after the short-term lockdown due to a corona outbreak did their best to help Williams achieve further winners.

But Osaka didn't let that bother them either.

Now it looked a bit like the final of the US Open 2018, as Osaka was as clearly superior to her childhood idol as it was back then.

With a score of 4: 5, Osaka had three match points within 30 seconds, Eurosport expert Barbara Rittner had stopped.

After 1:15 hours the 20th victory in a row on the tour was sealed for Osaka.

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Fitter, more agile: Serena Williams

Photo: ASANKA BRENDON RATNAYAKE / REUTERS

Waiting for the 24:

With this defeat, Williams has also lost another chance of the long-awaited 24th Grand Slam title and thus Margaret Court's record.

The chances have never been as good as they are now.

Williams looks stronger and more determined than in many of her Grand Slam appearances since she returned to the tour after the birth of her daughter Olympia.

Her fitness has improved, she has not moved as well as in a long time.

But against an Osaka who dominated her game better than she did, Williams had no chance either.

Williams' coach Patrick Mouratoglou had already said in advance that Court's 24 Grand Slam titles could not be compared with the 23 of his protégé: »There is tennis before the open era and tennis after the open era.

They are two different sports. "

Sister's advice

: The mandatory message on the camera lens after a game for winners has long since become routine.

Many sign, leave hearts, refer to foundations.

Others leave messages.

Naomi Osaka had something to say to her older sister this time: Mari, stop posting strange pictures in our group chat, it said there.

Many would certainly like to see the answer picture now.

Uncool

: Before the semi-finals, reporters reminded Osaka that if she reached the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam in the past, she always won the tournament.

So far, so impressive?

For the Australian Open winner from 2019, not really.

“I don't really care about the statistics because I was only in four quarter-finals,” said the Japanese: “If it were 20 or so, that would be cool, but four?

That doesn't really mean anything to me. ”By today's vision, 20 or so is quite possible.

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