Naomi Osaka overpowers Aryna Sabalenka to reach Wimbledon quarterfinals
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Naomi Osaka of Japan celebrates winning a point against Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus in their fourth round women's singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Sunday, July 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
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Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus reacts to losing against Naomi Osaka of Japan in their fourth-round women's singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Sunday, July 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)
LONDON (AP) — In a matchup of two of the hardest hitters on tour, Naomi Osaka outslugged top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 6-2, 7-6 (2) to reach the Wimbledon quarterfinals for the first time on Sunday.
Sabalenka had beaten Osaka in all three of their previous matches with Osaka this year — including at the same stage of the French Open last month.
But this time Sabalenka couldn’t handle Osaka’s pace and flat groundstrokes, which had an even bigger impact than usual as her balls flew through the air faster on the warmest day of the tournament so far.
The temperature during the match reached 28 degrees Celsius (82 Fahrenheit).
“She overpowered me,” Sabalenka said.
“I felt like it was an incredible level from her.”
Besides Paris, Sabalenka also beat Osaka in Indian Wells, California, and Madrid this year.
“That really sucked,” Osaka said. “So I wanted to like turn it over, and I’m really glad I had the opportunity to do that.”
When it was over, Osaka performed a few fist pumps, let out a brief smile, and then placed her racket over her head and spun around in delight to celebrate her first career win on Centre Court.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve had so much fun on the court,” Osaka said.
“And to do it here, it really means a lot.”
It was Osaka’s first win over a No. 1 player since beating Ash Barty in Beijing in 2019. That was before Osaka, a former No. 1 herself, took breaks from the tour to manage her mental health in 2021 and for maternity leave that resulted in her missing all of 2023.
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