MELBOURNE, Australia – For Naomi Osaka, the Australian Open tournament ruined the surprise: she may still face Serena Williams.
Osaka defeated Su-Wei Hsieh 6-2, 6-2 on Tuesday to reach the semifinals and will meet the winner of the quarterfinal match between Williams and Simona Halep, in row 2.
“Normally, I never look at my draws,” Osaka said. “But everyone told me about my draw here, so all I had to do was know who my next opponent was. It would definitely be a lot of fun.”
Sown in third place, Osaka reached 122 mph in his service against Hsieh. She hit seven aces, lost just two points in her first serve and was never broken on the way to her 19th straight victory.
Osaka also played an excellent defense, such as in the final game, when he ran forward to pursue a shot, throwing a cross field for a winner.
“I couldn’t afford to be lazy with my work on my feet,” Osaka said with a smile. “I didn’t want to play three sets.”
At 35, Hsieh was the oldest woman to make her professional quarter-final Grand Slam debut. But Osaka was not surprised by Hsieh’s flat, misleading two-handed shots from both sides, hitting the winners on the right in both corners.
Hsieh said Osaka is a threat to win the championship.
“He can always go all the way,” Hsieh said. “She just has to play her game and stay calm. She’s a great player. ”
The Osaka winner includes a US Open title in September for her third Grand Slam championship. The series also includes victory in the fourth round last week, when he saved two match points and swept the last four games to beat Garbine Muguruza.
“It makes me a little calmer, knowing that my back was rough against the wall,” Osaka said.
Osaka is 4-0 in the quarterfinals of the Grand Slam, including a victory on the way to the Australian Open title in 2019. In front of Williams, her record is 2-1, but they have not played each other since 2019.
“It’s Serena,” Osaka said. “I feel very intimidated when I see her on the other side of the yard.”
In the women’s doubles event, the extended race of the young American team Coco Gauff and Caty McNally ended in the quarterfinals with a loss of 7-6 (4), 6-1 against the fourth team of Demi Schuurs from the Netherlands and America Nicole Melichar.
Gauff and McNally had a 4-1 lead in the opening set before a series of unforced errors allowed Schuurs and Melichar to return. The winners took a 3-1 lead in the second set after a break from work and quickly closed the match.
The American pair defeated two series teams in previous matches.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.