LONDON \u2014 When power meets power, getting in the first blow can sometimes be the key.<\/p>\n
In a matchup of two of the hardest hitters on tour, that was Naomi Osaka’s<\/a> strategy against top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka<\/a> in the most highly awaited matchup of Wimbledon so far this year.<\/p>\n Sabalenka had beaten Osaka in all three of their previous matches this year \u2014 including at the same stage of the French Open last month.<\/p>\n “On the clay courts I felt like she was pushing me back a lot. I just tried to do it to her first,” Osaka said.<\/p>\n The tactics worked, and Osaka outslugged Sabalenka 6-2, 7-6 (2) to reach the quarterfinals at the All England Club for the first time on Sunday.<\/p>\n Osaka’s pace and flat groundstrokes overwhelmed Sabalenka.<\/p>\n “Obviously we’re big ball strikers. It’s not like I’m going to start running around the court trying to draw an error from her. I can only focus on my strengths,” Osaka said.<\/p>\n “I just tried to serve really well, because it’s grass. I also tried to get the upper hand in the rallies first.”<\/p>\n Osaka’s power 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).<\/p>\n “She overpowered me,” Sabalenka said. “I felt like it was incredible level from her.”<\/p>\n Besides Paris, Sabalenka also beat Osaka in Indian Wells, California, and Madrid this year.<\/p>\n “That really sucked,” Osaka said. “So I wanted to turn it (around).”<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n “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.”<\/p>\n 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.<\/p>\n Osaka’s daughter turned three on Thursday.<\/p>\n After getting routed by Iga Swiatek at the Italian Open in May, Osaka said she “shut everyone out” on her team and “literally just got on a plane back home.<\/p>\n “It wasn’t the most professional thing to do,” she said. “I felt really ashamed about what I did. So then after that I just told myself, ‘Hey, I’m nearing 30, I really got to enjoy the time that I have.’ Also, obviously tennis is very, very important to me, but I have a life outside of that. I have to treasure tennis in the way that I can, which is not putting too much importance on it.”<\/p>\n It’s the second straight Grand Slam in which Sabalenka has failed to reach the latter stages. After a stunning meltdown against Diana Shnaider in the French Open quarterfinals<\/a> last month, Sabalenka said she “just want to quit tennis.”<\/p>\n This time, Sabalenka said she wanted to “get completely drunk, forget about tennis, and try to get in better shape.”<\/p>\n Sabalenka and Osaka have each won four Grand Slam titles. All their major trophies have come on hard courts \u2014 at the Australian Open and U.S. Open.<\/p>\n Osaka is coming off her first grass-court final. She had to retire against Karolina Muchova in Bad Homburg, Germany, last weekend because of a foot injury.<\/p>\n She’ll now get a rematch with Muchova, who beat 2024 Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova 7-5, 5-7, 6-3.<\/p>\n Before the match, Osaka came out in the white kimono she’s been wearing for her walk-ons at Wimbledon \u2014 which was inspired by a character in a Quentin Tarantino movie.<\/p>\n Unlike at the French Open, when the designer for Osaka’s walk-on outfits “was sewing things immediately after I won,” the kimono was designed in Japan, so “it’s not like (the designer) can make a brand-new thing every time.”<\/p>\n Instead, Osaka is using variations on the same outfit. For her past two matches, she’s employed “the free-robe vibe” inspired by an anime called Bleach.<\/p>\n Osaka saved the only two break points she faced and put 87% of her first serves in play \u2014 compared to 69% for Sabalenka.<\/p>\n Osaka also led 8-5 in aces and 21-15 in winners in the match, which lasted less than 1 \u00bd hours.<\/p>\n “What could I do if the person is acing and hitting the lines, just going for her shots without any fear?” Sabalenka said. “She was just going for it.<\/p>\n “Level-wise, today,” Sabalenka added, “I wasn’t world No. 1.”<\/p>\n Coco Gauff reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals for the first time by overcoming Belinda Bencic 4-6, 3-6, 6-4 just before the 11 p.m. curfew.<\/p>\n Gauff will next meet fellow American Jessica Pegula, who beat Iva Jovic \u2014 another American \u2014 4-6, 6-3, 6-1.<\/p>\n Earlier on Centre Court, Novak Djokovic beat 132nd-ranked qualifier Roman Safiullin 7-6 (6), 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 for a record 106th match victory<\/a> at the All England Club.<\/p>\n Djokovic will next play third-seeded Felix Auger-Aliassime, who beat Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-7 (4), 7-6 (6), 6-3, 6-7 (2), 6-1.<\/p>\n Top-ranked Jannik Sinner beat Japanese qualifier Shintaro Mochizuki 6-3, 7-6 (0), 6-3 and will next meet Jan-Lennard Struff, who advanced when Hubert Hurkacz retired while trailing 4-2 in the fifth set due to a strained abdominal muscle.<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n