Naomi Osaka overcame a mid-match wobble to beat Katerina Siniakova 6-2 5-7 6-1 and reach the third round of the US Open. It wasn't quite as headline-grabbing a display - both on and off the court - from Osaka, who sported a more understated entrance outift, for which she is gaining increasing notoriety. The two-time US Open champion had turned heads when wearing a long, white skirt and hooded robe featuring newspaper clippings about her ahead of her tournament opener on Monday night.
But on this occasion, Osaka opted for a more understated, shimmery all-white number which wouldn't have looked out of place at Wimbledon rather than Flushing Meadows. The 13th seed was swiftly into her stride in the first set, breaking Siniakova to love in the fourth game of the opener, which she clinched with a second break of the Czech. Osaka appeared to be cruising to victory in the second when breaking for 4-2 and 5-3 leads, only for her serve to desert her at that time as she was broken three times in a row to ultimately drop the set 7-5.
The four-time Gland Slam winner found her footing again for the decider, dropping only one game to clinch her spot in the next round. Iga Swiatek also stormed into the third round of the US Open, with a clinical 6-3 6-2 win over Nadia Podoroska that took just 71 minutes. Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player It was only the second meeting between the pair - the previous coming in the semi-finals of the 2020 French Open, with Swiatek victorious en route to claiming the first of her six Grand Slam titles.
The 2022 US Open champion, seeded eighth this year in New York, was back to her ruthless best. She broke in the fourth game of the opening set and pushed on to take it 6-3, before snatching a crucial break of serve in the first game of the second set to ensure that she stayed firmly in control. Podoroska showed some glimpses of her best form, but Swiatek was rarely under pressure and converted her first match point to book her place in the third round at Flushing Meadows for the seventh-straight time.
The US Open is live on Sky Sports from August 30. Stream tennis with no contract on NOW and the Sky Sports App. You can also watch the Laver Cup at The O2 in London from 25-27 September live on Sky Sports.
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