Canadian 18-year-old Leylah Fernandez delivered a shocking upset to Naomi Osaka on Thursday in the third round of the US Open, and then Osaka delivered some shocking news afterward. The match gave the 73rd-ranked Fernandez her first victory over a top-three player and broke the third-ranked Osaka’s winning streak of Grand Slam matches at 16.
Fernandez’s 7-5, 6-7 (2-7), 6-4 win at Arthur Ashe Stadium was set up by a timely second-set tiebreaker, making Osaka’s elimination the first among the women’s draw’s top-10 players. After the frustrating loss, during which Osaka threw her racquet, the 23-year-old said she is considering taking another break from tennis.
“Basically, I feel like I’m kind of at this point where I’m trying to figure out what I want to do, and I honestly don’t know when I’m going to play my next tennis match,” Osaka told reporters during her postmatch press conference.
A crying Osaka then added: “I think I’m going to take a break from playing for a while.”
A STUNNER IN ASHE!
?? teenager Leylah Fernandez knocks off defending champion Naomi Osaka in three sets. pic.twitter.com/Sf61oFupub
Not many predicted Fernandez would take down the defending US Open champion. Fernandez, though, certainly did.
“From the very beginning, right before the match,” Fernandez said. “I knew I was able to win.”
Osaka has now lost in the third round three tournaments in a row dating to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which marked her return to tennis following a break she took for her mental health well-being after pulling out of the French Open in early June. She also skipped Wimbledon before competing in the Olympics.
