by Steve Flink
@SFlinko
One of the chief issues facing women’s tennis in recent years has been a lack of continuity. Heading into the 2021 Australian Open a few weeks ago, there had been no fewer than nine first time champions in the previous 14 major tournaments. This cavalcade of emerging stars is demonstrable proof that the women’s game has more depth and diversity than ever before, but the sporting public often prefers familiarity to one surprise after another. Many fans yearn for an attachment to players and personalities who have succeeded before—and are destined to come through again—on the stages of consequence.
That is why Naomi Osaka’s latest triumph in Melbourne is such a boost for the game. Osaka has established herself unequivocally as the most dynamic woman player of her era. She has grown comfortably into her talent, improving markedly over the past couple of years, achieving a status as a superstar that transcends tennis. Osaka handles herself so well on and off the court that she is swiftly gaining a singular following among fans that will only grow in the years ahead.
In today’s final at the Australian Open, Osaka eclipsed Jen Brady 6-4, 6-3 with unmistakable self assurance and remarkable forbearance. To be sure, she was periodically apprehensive, but characteristically she moved past her nerves and upended her American adversary decisively in the end. And so Osaka has won her first four Grand Slam tournament finals, a feat previously achieved in the Open Era only by Roger Federer and Monica Seles. As Osaka said after her victory over Brady, “That’s very amazing company. I hope that I can have like one grain of how their careers have unfolded.”
Almost surely she will. In my view, Osaka is not even remotely near her peak, and yet she already is displaying a versatility, creativity and mindset that only rare champions possess. Her first serve is now the best in women’s tennis. Her heavy kick on the second serve is underrated. The package of the first and second deliveries make her the finest server in her sport. Off the ground, Osaka is explosive yet well measured. Her forehand is scorching and unanswerable and her two-handed backhand is also very penetrating. Osaka is a spectacular athlete who moves with astonishing alacrity. In time, she will start coming forward more regularly and her skills on the volley will expand.
But what I like best about Osaka is her temperament. She is made for the big occasions, remaining cool in every crisis, fighting past inner tension the way few in her field can do, spurring herself on at pivotal points in a match. Every time she has reached the quarterfinals at a major, she has gone on to win the title. There were times in 2019 and 2020 when she seemed somewhat fragile in big matches, but no longer is that so. Osaka is a magnificent tennis player for many reasons, but put mental toughness right up there among her most commendable qualities. Her determination was evident time and again in her duel with Brady on the hard courts of Melbourne.
The match began on Osaka’s terms as she held at love in the opening game, which featured two aces down the T and a service winner from the No 3 seed. Brady raced to a 40-0 lead in the second game but then double faulted. She eventually held on her fifth game point for 1-1, but in many ways the die had been cast.
Now Osaka opened up a lead. She held at 15 for 2-1 and followed with a break at love in the fourth game as Brady twice double faulted long. If Osaka had managed to hold in the fifth game, she might well have glided through that first set. But, at 40-30, she drove a backhand up the line that traveled long. The opening was there; the execution was not. Osaka double faulted at deuce and then faltered, netting a crosscourt backhand to lose her serve.
Brady was back in business. The prideful American commenced the sixth game with a backhand winner down the line and a forehand inside in winner. She soon held at love for 3-3. Osaka’s swagger was temporarily gone. In the seventh game she trailed 15-30 but, typically, she served her way out of a precarious position, taking three points in a row with a service winner, an ace and then some strikingly heavy hitting.
To 4-3 went Osaka with that surge, but Brady obstinately stood her ground to reach 4-4, saving a break point as Osaka netted a forehand despite a good opening. After three deuces, Brady sedulously held on with an ace. Soon Osaka trailed 0-30 in the ninth game, and then missed her first serve. Yet Brady could not exploit that opportunity, missing a forehand return long off an effective kicker from Osaka. Brady had a break point at 30-40 but Osaka met that moment boldly, lacing a forehand crosscourt winner with an added dose of topspin enabling her to control that shot and make it dip just inside the sideline. Despite missing six of eight first serves, Osaka still managed to hold on for 5-4.
Brady had a 40-15 lead in the tenth game, but the Japanese player rushed her into a mistake off the forehand and then the 25-year-old American double faulted. At deuce, Osaka was fortunate when a one-handed crosscourt stab off the backhand on the stretch somehow landed deep and safely in the corner. Brady tracked it down and tried a forehand inside in, but, frazzled, she missed. At set point Osaka’s return landed short. It looked like a sitter, but Brady netted an easy forehand at the worst possible time. The set belonged to Osaka 6-4.
Plainly, Osaka was both relieved and exhilarated. She had won 44 of her 45 previous matches at the majors after winning the opening set; only Simona Halep at the 2016 French Open had rallied from such a deficit against Osaka. Now Osaka opened up her wings and played more freely. On her way to 4-0 in the second set, she was nearly letter perfect, winning 16 of 22 points, striking the ball cleanly and forcefully, returning with extraordinary depth and efficiency, bearing down with quiet and deep intensity. When she held at 30 in the third game with an ace, Osaka exclaimed, “Come On!” Her outlook only became brighter when she broke Brady at 15 for 4-0, missing only one return in that stellar game.
But Brady refused to surrender. Osaka had a game point for 5-0, but Brady erased it emphatically with a crackling inside out forehand winner, and eventually she secured the service break. Buoyed by that development, Brady held at love, producing two service winners and a forehand winner. The Osaka lead had been cut to 4-2. Osaka remained poised, serving an ace for a 30-0 lead in the seventh game. She held on at 30 as Brady pressed on an inside out forehand, sending that shot wide. Osaka had moved to 5-2.
Brady survived a deuce game to hold for 3-5, and so the stage was set for Osaka to serve for the match in the ninth game. She opened up the court with a wide serve for a stinging forehand down the line. Brady had no play. Osaka went to 30-0 on an errant forehand from Brady. There was no stopping the world’s finest hard court player now. She coaxed a forehand return error from Brady with another first rate second serve kicker, and then concluded the contest with another service winner. Osaka had fittingly held at love to complete her 6-4, 6-3 victory.
Despite connecting with only 48% of her first serves, Osaka succeeded admirably and lost her serve only twice—both times from a break up. She won 73% of her first serve points, 11% better than Brady. Osaka took 55% of her second serve points, while Brady stood at only 42% in that category. Quite simply, Osaka outplayed Brady across the board. She largely set the tempo from the backcourt, kept Brady essentially at bay, forced the American to go for shots that were not in the cards, and played some sweepingly beautiful tennis— even if she was not at her best. Brady sporadically made life difficult for Osaka with her formidable forehand firepower and some strong service games, but she was simply outclassed.
Osaka’s career is still young. This was only her 18th major tournament. But after losing in her first ten Grand Slam tournaments, she has won four of her last eight. That is a trend any player would take.
Making her second Australian Open victory all the more impressive is this: Osaka is only the seventh woman in the Open Era ever to secure the Australian Open title after saving at least one match point over the course of the tournament. Seles did it in 1991, followed by Jennifer Capriati (2002), Serena Williams (2003 and 2005), Li Na (2014), Angelique Kerber (2016) and Caroline Wozniacki (2018). Osaka, of course, valiantly saved two match points in the round of 16 against Garbine Muguruza, rescuing herself from 3-5, 15-40 down in the third set to win four games in a row for the win.
There will be many more triumphs to come for the powerfully driven Osaka. I can’t imagine she won’t win at least seven or eight more majors. At 23, barring any serious injuries, she has perhaps ten more prime years left in her career. That is why my projection of Osaka eventually claiming eleven or twelve career crowns at the majors might be conservative. She might well climb considerably higher than that.
After taking the title in Melbourne, Osaka said, “I honestly just told myself before the match I’m probably not going to play well. I shouldn’t put that pressure on myself to play perfectly but just go out there and fight for every point. You know, the outcome is whatever it wants to be, but I can live with the fact that I tried hard. When you play these finals, you want to win a Grand Slam title. You don’t want to go into a final wanting to be the runner-up.”
Osaka continued, “For me I feel like every opportunity that I play a Slam is an opportunity to win a Slam. So maybe I do put that pressure on myself too much, but honestly it is working out in my favor right now. The funny thing is I don’t look at expectations as a burden anymore.”
The next step for Osaka will be remedying her record at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, and proving that she can play at the same lofty level on clay and grass as she does on hard courts. Osaka has not made it past the third round at either of those tournaments yet, but inevitably she will make the transition and transfer her success to all of the majors and to every surface. She believes she is ready to do damage sooner on clay than she is on grass, but with her serve and agility she will eventually become a great player on the lawns.
Meanwhile, Osaka can be proud that she has moved up to No. 2 in the world. It is only a matter of time before she resides at No. 1. Osaka is almost surely going to provide continuity for women’s tennis, and that is good news for the game.
Steve Flink is a member of the International Tennis Hall of Fame and the author of the books “The Pete Sampras: Greatness Revisited” for sale and download here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/1937559947/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_YZ5G9J6HKCCDX6746CAC and “The Greatest Tennis Matches of All Time” for sale and download here https://www.amazon.com/dp/0942257936/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_5EDQPRZNGNWDDQ1Z7DN3 via @amazon
