Naomi Osaka has called out US Open bosses over the scheduling of her semi-final showdown against Amanda Anisimova. The former champion has enjoyed a stellar campaign in New York, playing some excellent tennis on her way to the last four. She earned big wins over Daria Kasatkina and reigning French Open champion Coco Gauff before beating Karolina Muchova in the quarter-finals.
Osaka is now just one match away from reaching her third US Open final, with Anisimova standing in her way. It will take place in the early hours of Friday morning as the last match of the night session at Flushing Meadows. Osaka is not best pleased with the scheduling of the contest and made her feelings clear in a recent press conference.
She jokingly suggested that, as a mother, she should have been given a more convenient time slot by tournament chiefs. Osaka said: “Yeah, so they put the mom on last. That’s crazy.
“So, yeah, you know, I’ll probably tell you how much I appreciate it at the end of the tournament, which is hopefully on Saturday [the day of the women’s singles final] for me. But regardless, I’m just really grateful to be playing well in this city.”
Osaka also spoke about falling in love with tennis all over again, having rekindled her enjoyment of the sport after a difficult few years.
“I learned I love tennis way more than I thought I did and I learned that I actually really love challenges,” she explained. “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. I think for me, I appreciate the journey a lot more now. I think when I was younger, I kind of just kept thinking of the next one, the next one, the next one.
“And obviously, I would love to appreciate everything right now, but I have a match to play tomorrow.”
Osaka has lost both of her previous matches against Anisimova, who reached this year’s Wimbledon final but suffered a chastening 6-0 6-0 defeat at the hands of Iga Swiatek.
New York has been a happy hunting ground for Osaka in years gone by, though. She has won both of the finals she has played in, prevailing in 2018 before repeating the feat in 2020.
Osaka will likely be forced to play against the will of the crowd, who will almost certainly be supporting Anisimova. The latter is the fourth-highest ranked American player behind Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula and Madison Keys.
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Content Source: www.express.co.uk