Osaka sets up Gauff meeting in China Open last 16

Japanese Naomi Osaka won against American Katie Volynets 6-3, 6-2 to advance to the last 16 of the China Open at the National Tennis Center in Beijing on Monday.

Osaka eased past Volynets in an hour, 18 minutes on the back of five aces and three break-point conversions. Also, she denied the American any break points, keeping her serve unchallenged throughout the two sets.

The world No 73, pro’s first-serve average stood at an ordinary 56 percent but she made up for the deficit by claiming 82 percent of first-serve points.

Osaka, coached by Patrick Mouratoglou, will play American Coco Gauff, the No 4 seed, next. The two have met each other on court on four occasions thus far, with their head-to-head balanced at 2-2.

They first faced each other at 2019 US Open (Round of 32), where the former world No 1 defeated Gauff 6-3, 6-0. Gauff levelled the one-on-one by registering a 6-3, 6-4 win in their second match-up at 2020 Australian Open (Round of 32).

Osaka took the lead in the head-to-head when she defeated Gauff 6-4, 3-6, 6-4 in Cincinnati in 2021 (Round of 32) but the latter equalled the scores once again by claiming their 2022 meeting in San Jose (Round of 16) 6-4, 6-4.

In the previous rounds of the Beijing tournament, the Japanese beat Italian Lucia Bronzetti (6-3, 6-2) and Kazakh Yulia Putintseva, the No 21 seed (3-6, 6-4, 6-2).

Volynets, ranked No 60, won against Hungarian qualifier Dalma Galfi (7-5, 6-1) and Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk, the No 14 seed (7-5, 6-3) earlier in the tournament.

Beijing WTA 1000, other third-round results (National Tennis Center, hard, USD 8.955.610):

• Nadia Podoroska vs. Qinwen Zheng
• Daria Kasatkina vs. Amanda Anisimova
• Mirra Andreeva vs. Donna Vekic
• Jasmine Paolini vs. Magda Linette
• Karolina Muchova vs. Jaqueline Cristian
• Cristina Bucsa vs. Elise Mertens
• Aryna Sabalenka vs. Ashlyn Krueger
• Anna Kalinskaya (10) beat Peyton Stearns: 3-6, 6-3, 3-1 ret.
• Madison Keys (18) beat Beatriz Haddad Maia (13): 6-3, 6-3
• Coco Gauff beat Katie Boulter (26): 7-5, 6-2
• Shuai Zhang (WC) beat Greet Minnen: 6-2, 6-3
• Jessica Pegula (2) beat Veronika Kudermetova (32): 6-7 (9), 6-1, 6-2
• Yuliia Starodubtseva (Q) beat Elina Avanesyan: 6-3, 6-1
• Paula Badosa (15) beat Rebecca Sramkova (Q): 7-5, 7-5
• Magdalena Frech (23) beat Diana Shnaider (12): 0-6, 6-3, 6-4

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