In a rematch from an excellent US Open semifinal, Naomi Osaka plays for her fourth Major, while Jenn Brady goes for her first.
23-year-old Naomi Osaka has won six titles in her career, and half of them are Majors. Since the tour re-start in August, she’s an undefeated 20-0. And she’s 11-0 in her career when advancing beyond the fourth round of Grand Slam events. Her poise in the big moments is a rare trait, and she provided some insight into her mentality after her semifinal win over Serena Williams.
“The winner’s name is the one that’s engraved, so I think I fight the hardest in the finals. And I think that’s where, you know, you sort of set yourself apart,” said Osaka.
Until six months ago, 25-year-old Jennifer Brady had never reached a Major quarterfinal, and never reached a WTA final. Last August, she won her first title in Lexington. A few weeks later, she advanced to the semifinals of the US Open. And here at the next hard court Slam, she’s achieved her first Major final. She was one of the players who had to hard quarantine for 14 days when arriving in Australia, spending all 24 hours of those days inside her hotel room. When asked after her semifinal victory over Karolina Muchova if she could have imagined this result after the hard quarantine, her voice cracked as she answered.
“Even before quarantine, I didn’t think I would be where I am right now, sitting at this podium, answering your question,” said Brady.
The mixed doubles final will also take place on Saturday night, with two of the best doubles players in the world taking on a wild card team from Australia which features a Major singles champion.
Saturday’s action will begin at 7:30pm local time, with the mixed doubles championship following the women’s singles final.
Naomi Osaka (3) vs. Jennifer Brady (22)
Osaka has claimed both of their previous meetings. In 2018 on clay, she won in straight sets. But their semifinal this past September at the US Open was a high-quality, tight three-setter. In that match, both struck eight more aces than double faults. And each hit 35 winners, compared to 25 unforced errors by Brady and 17 by Osaka. They also both earned only one break of serve, which is not shocking considering they are two of the best servers in the game. As Rennae Stubbs pointed out on ESPN during Osaka’s semifinal with Serena Williams, Naomi’s ball toss can escape her when she’s nervous, as it did at the start of that match. She actually struck more double faults than aces on Thursday. But the biggest factor in that match was Naomi winning all four break points she earned, while Serena went only two-for-seven. That again speaks to Osaka’s mettle in the big moments.
Similarly, Brady converted all three break points she had on Thursday, while Muchova only went three-for-seven. And Brady’s own mettle was revealed in a long, dramatic last game, where she required five match points to finish off a defiant Muchova. However, Jenn is the underdog to win her first Major on Saturday. While Brady has a great serve and forehand, so does Osaka. And Naomi has the edge with her backhand, movement, and experience. When they played at the US Open, Osaka was the steadier player, hitting eight less errors than Brady. In a rematch that could be decided by small margins, Naomi Osaka is the favorite to win her fourth Major, becoming the first player to win a fourth Slam singles title since Maria Sharapova in 2012.
Other Notable Matches on Day 13:
In the mixed doubles final, it’s Barbora Krejcikova and Rajeev Ram (6) vs. Sam Stosur and Matthew Ebden (WC). Krejcikova and Ram also separately advanced to the men’s and women’s doubles final of this event.
Saturday’s full order of play is here.
