Naomi Osaka is into the Auckland semis Naomi Osaka is into the Auckland semis Naomi Osaka is into her first WTA Tour-level semi-final since 2022 after she overcame Hailey Baptiste 6-7 (2-7) 6-1 6-2 at the Auckland Open. (More Sports News)falcon play
Osaka fell behind to her American opponent on Friday, but the former world number one hit back in style, securing five breaks of serve across the last two sets.
The 27-year-old managed two quarter-finals last year, but had not reached the last four of a Tour-level tournament since the Miami Open in 2022.
She beat Belinda Bencic on that occasion, before going down in the final to Iga Swiatek.
Osaka to the semis @naomiosaka battles back to defeat Baptiste 6-7, 6-1, 6-2 and reaches the semifinals in Auckland.#ASBClassic25 pic.twitter.com/wqWZE5SMqL
— wta (@WTA) January 3, 2025And while she had her frustrations on the Tour last season, Osaka believes the hard work she has put in since returning from her maternity leave is now paying off.
"I think the key focuses that I had were just to have a lot of belief and confidence in myself," Osaka said.
In the first match, Haryana thrashed Rajasthan 6-1. Rohit Rana (2nd minute), Sunil Maan (11th), Sahil Ruhal (17th) and Ami Khasa (60th) scored one goal each, while Navraj Singh (7th, 37th) struck a brace for Haryana.
The first match of the final round of group matches took place between Korea and Malaysia and resulted in a 3-3 draw. The splitting of points confirmed Korea's qualification to the semifinal. The draw also ensured that Pakistan would finish second in the group regardless of their result in their last group match against India.
animoto slot"I think I put a lot of work in throughout last year, and even though the results didn’t show it, I think I'm just continuing to, I guess, try as hard as I can and see where it gets me.
"In a weird way I’m glad to have played a three-set match because I think that’s kind of the experience I need."
Osaka will play on Saturday for a place in Sunday's finalfalcon play, as she targets her first title since she won the 2021 Australian Open.
