Naomi Osaka's run at U.S. Open continues with straight set victory in quarterfinals

Naomi Osaka has been playing her best tennis since returning from her 17-month maternity leave at the start of the 2024 season.

And now the two-time U.S. Open champion is one step closer to reaching the tournament’s mountaintop.

Osaka, the No. 23 seed in this year’s tournament, defeated No. 11 seed Karolina Muchova, 6-4, 7-6 (3), in the quarterfinals at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Wednesday night.

“I appreciate the journey a lot more now,” Osaka said. “I think when I was younger, I kind of just kept thinking the next one, the next one, the next one. Obviously I would love to appreciate everything right now, but I have a match to play tomorrow.

“I'll probably tell you how much I appreciate it at the end of the tournament, which is hopefully on Saturday for me. But regardless, I'm just really grateful to be playing well in this city.”

Osaka, 27, will face eighth-seeded Amanda Anisimova in the semifinals in the second match on Ashe Thursday night. She is back in the U.S. Open semifinals for the first time since she won it all in 2020 (she also won in 2018). She is two wins away from her first major tournament victory since the 2021 Australian Open (which she also won in 2019).

Osaka and Muchova, 29, had plenty of previous Grand Slam tournament history, including in the U.S. Open. In last year’s second round, Muchova earned a 6-3, 7-6 (5) victory over Osaka, who was a wild card entry. In the second round of January’s Australian Open, Osaka defeated Muchova, 1-6, 6-1, 6-3.

“I think she played great even before, even last year in Australia and here as well,” Muchova said. “I think maybe the change would be in the confidence.”

In Monday’s round of 16, Osaka defeated third-seeded Coco Gauff — a result that pointed toward her potential re-emergence among the sport’s best. She mentioned after that victory how happy she was to no longer need a wild card to enter big tournaments, and on Wednesday she reflected on the past 18 months.

“I learned I loved tennis way more than I thought I did, and I learned that I actually really love challenges,” she said. “It's like a video game. You pick it up, and even if you lose a level, you kind of just restart and keep going until you eventually win. I think it's a little tough at some times, but I wouldn't trade it for the world.”

Osaka and Muchova each held serve for the match’s first nine games, with the former finally breaking the trend in the 10th game to win the first set.

Muchova took an injury timeout between the first and second sets and had a wrap on her left thigh when she returned to action.

“I don't know what it is,” Muchova said. “I think it's just something with the muscle that's hopefully not going to take me long to heal.”

Muchova, who appeared somewhat limited, picked up a break to begin the second set, snapping Osaka’s streak of 18 consecutive service holds. Osaka responded with a break of her own, but each player held serve for the next six games. Muchova and Osaka traded breaks to make it 5-5, and two ensuing holds sent the set to a tiebreak.

Osaka never trailed in the tiebreak, leading 4-1 and 6-2 before closing it out.

Anisimova, 24, notched a 6-4, 6-3 upset victory over No. 2 seed Iga Swiatek earlier Wednesday, flipping the script from July’s Wimbledon final. Swiatek defeated Anisimova, 6-0, 6-0, on July 12, just the third women’s Grand Slam singles final in history to end in “double bagel” fashion.

The result was a sweet reversal for Anisimova, who was born in Freehold, New Jersey, and is in the U.S. Open semifinals for the first time. She is two wins away from her first Grand Slam title and called Wednesday “the most meaningful victory I’ve had in my life.”

“I feel like I was really able to bounce back from it really quickly,” she said. “Maybe a few years ago I wouldn't have done the same as well as I have this time. Yeah, it's definitely nothing I've ever experienced before. I never lost 6-0, 6-0, and then to lose 6-0 in a Grand Slam final was a lot to experience.

“Today I'm just really, really proud of myself. I feel like I really made a point to myself and also maybe to other people that if you really put a positive mindset out there or, I don't know, just try and work through things, then you can have a positive outcome. I feel like I was really able to do all the right things, so I'm really happy.”

By Ben Dickson

benjamin.dickson@newsday.com@bendickson__

Ben Dickson is Newsday Sports' general assignment reporter. He joined Newsday’s high school sports staff in 2023 after graduating from Maryland, where he covered several of the Terrapins' teams.