Naomi Osaka is back to her resilient ways. On Wednesday night she turned back 11th-seeded Karolina Muchova for a 6-4, 7-6 quarter-final victory at Arthur Ashe Stadium in just under two hours’ time. The former world No 1, who is just two years removed from watching the tournament from the stands, now finds herself back in a major semi-final for the first time since giving birth to her daughter, Shai, and well on her way toward reprising her mantle as a women’s tour standard-bearer.
The two-time US Open champion enters Thursday’s matchup against Wimbledon finalist Amanda Anisimova as the sentimental favorite. All four times that the Japanese has reached a grand slam quarter-final in her still-young career, she has gone on to win it all. Throughout this year’s US Open, she has not only sustained flashes of the belligerent game that gave rise to her hardcourt dominance. She’s shown she can move with the best of them and bide her time in long rallies and lash a winner when the moment’s right.
