Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka set up a clash with Coco Gauff at the China Open after marching into the last 16 with a straight-sets victory on Monday. The former world number one defeated 60th-ranked American Katie Volynets 6-3, 6-2 in Beijing. Japan’s Osaka is playing her first tournament under Patrick Mouratoglou, the Frenchman best known for being the long-time former coach of Serena Williams. The 26-year-old Osaka has struggled for consistency and form since returning to tennis in January after the birth of her daughter Shai, in July last year, and is now ranked 73rd in the world.…
Author: KBC Digital
US Open runner-up Jessica Pegula survived a scare to reach the last 16 of the China Open on Sunday and a meeting with Spain’s Paula Badosa. The second seed from the United States fought back in Beijing to beat Veronika Kudermetova 6-7 (9/11), 6-1, 6-2. The first set was a mammoth one, the 39th-ranked Russian prevailing in the tie break to take an early lead. Pegula struck back in the second set, then carried that momentum into the deciding set and grabbed an early break to giver her a sniff of victory. The 30-year-old Pegula, who is chasing a seventh…