World number three Naomi Osaka warned Tuesday that she’s feeling confident and “at ease” after storming past Hsieh Su-wei in straight sets to book an Australian Open semi-final against Serena Williams.
The Japanese three-time Grand Slam champion overcame the Taiwanese world number 71’s unorthodox style 6-2, 6-2 in an all-Asian quarter-final at a crowd-less Rod Laver Arena.
Osaka hit 24 winners in a dominant display lasting just 66 minutes against her 35-year-old opponent, who made history by becoming the oldest woman in the Open era to debut in the quarter-finals of a Slam.
After being thrown off her rhythm early by the canny Su-wei, a focused Osaka took control and then cruised to victory in stark contrast to her fourth-round match where she needed to save two match points in a tense battle against last year’s runner-up in Australia, GarbineMuguruza.
“I think my confidence was raised after I played Muguruza the other day just because she’s such a quality opponent, and my back was against the wall,” Osaka said about coming back from 3-5 and 15-40 on her serve in the third set.
“I’m at ease with how my game is right now.
“I felt like today I told myself just to be really intense from the beginning.
– ‘I didn’t want three sets’ –
“I felt like I knew what to expect and that I couldn’t afford to be lazy with my footwork or anything.
“I didn’t want to play three sets today.”
Osaka, 23, will play 23-time Grand Slam winner Williams for a place in Saturday’s final.