Osaka beats Azarenka for second US Open title

 

Naomi Osaka battled from a set down to beat Victoria Azarenka to win her second US Open title on Saturday.

Osaka, the fourth seed, overcame her unseeded opponent 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 inside a near-empty Arthur Ashe Stadium at Flushing Meadows.

Azarenka, 31, sprinted to the first set in just 26 minutes, dominating Osaka with an 88 per cent success rate on her first serve as the Japanese hit a whopping 13 unforced errors.

The Belarusian then went 2-0 ahead in the second set before Osaka fought back to break her opponent’s serve twice and take a 4-3 lead.

The momentum had quickly swung in Osaka’s favour and she broke a third time to take the match to a deciding set.

Osaka enjoyed the first breakthrough of set three in game four when she broke Azarenka’s serve to take a 3-1 lead.

Azarenka then blew a golden opportunity to get back into the match, wasting three break points as Osaka recovered from 0-40 to hold for a 4-1 lead.

She however saved four break points to make it 4-2 as she battled to keep the contest alive.

When she broke Osaka in game seven, the set was back on serve.

But Osaka immediately broke back after Azarenka pushed a forehand wide, and closed the match when the Belarusian found the net.