Staff Reporter.
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Naomi Osaka has booked her place in the US Open quarter-finals with a 6-3 6-2 win over the tournament’s third seed and home favourite Coco Gauff on Monday.
Osaka, champion at Flushing Meadows in 2018 and 2020, made the perfect start as she broke Gauff’s serve in the opening game, which left the American on the back foot for much of the first set as she fell 4-2 behind.
There were moments of brilliance during Gauff’s outing, particularly when she landed a backhand winner in the first set, which drew applause from the crowd and Osaka herself, but her opponent proved to be too strong.
Osaka took the opening set at the first point of asking after Gauff made two double faults, and 16 altogether compared to Osaka’s five in the first set.
Osaka broke Gauff in the second set to lead 5-2 and Gauff’s errors continued. Serving to stay in the match, Gauff made a solid start by landing an ace, but Osaka brought up match point in a flash, and booked her place in the quarter-finals after the 2023 US Open champion netted.
It is the first time since the 2021 Australian Open that Osaka has made it through to the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam.
Meanwhile Felix Auger-Aliassime beat 15th seed Andrey Rublev in straight sets to set up a US Open quarter-final tie against Australia’s Alex de Minaur.
The Canadian, 25, dominated the Russian 7-5 6-3 6-4 to progress to the last eight at Flushing Meadows for the first time since 2021, when he reached the semi-finals.
Rublev had been the favourite before the match, given he had beaten Auger-Aliassime in seven of the pair’s previous eight matches.
But Auger-Aliassime, who won the US Open junior title in 2016, overpowered Rublev, hitting 42 winners to the Russian’s 22 and losing his serve just once.
The Canadian’s dominance irked Rublev, who smashed his racquet at the end of the second set and appeared frustrated as the match slipped away.