Naomi Osaka has gotten her revenge over Caroline Garcia and clinched her first Australian Open win since 2022 after beating the Frenchwoman 6-3 3-6 6-3 in a match that finished 20 minutes past midnight in Melbourne.
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Last year, the Japanese returned to Melbourne Park as a mom and suffered a first-round loss to the former world No. 4.
Later in her press, Osaka didn't hide that she was very frustrated with the defeat.
This year, she drew the same opponent - in the same stage - again.
But this time, Osaka was the one who ended on the winning side after firing seven aces and 25 winners, as well as converting four of her six break point chances.
Throughout the match, it was an even battle. Even in the third set, there wasn't much separating the two but the only difference was that the former world No. 1 came up big in the key moments and realized her chances.
Now, the four-time Grand Slam champion is set for a very tough test as she plays next against 2023 French Open runner-up Karolina Muchova.
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How Osaka beat Garcia?
In the first set, the two-time Australian Open champion went 2-of-2 on her break points in the fifth and ninth games and that was enough for her to seal the opener.
After winning the first set, the Japanese had two consecutive game points in the first game of the second set but then hit a double fault - made some errors - and ended up losing her serve for the first time.
That changed the rhythm of the match as Garcia stabilized and went on to force a decider after collecting another break in the ninth game.
However, Osaka was able to respond and prevent the Frenchwoman from completing a comeback win after breaking the 31-year-old twice in the third set.
While the Japanese claimed two breaks and didn't lose any of her service games in the decider, it should be noted that Garcia had a total of four break points across two games but the four-time Grand Slam winner saved it.
