Daria Kasatkina booked a Wimbledon date with Naomi Osaka after a two-hour and 37-minute win over Indonesia’s Janice Tien.
Kasatkina, Australia’s number two, won 6-7 (5/7), 6-1, 6-4 to become the first Australian to reach the third round of a grass-court tournament.
Osaka, who beat Anastasia Gasanova 6-3, 6-2, may seem a daunting opponent as a four-time Grand Slam champion, but the former world number one has never gone beyond this stage at Wimbledon.
Relaxed Djokovic passes Tsitsipas
Kasatkina was happy to hear this, noting that Osaka has all the necessary tools for grass.
“Obviously it’s a very tough draw and a very tough match, especially on grass. I’ve never beaten her before so it’s not an ideal situation for me, but it’s also less pressure on me,” she said.
“She has a very good serve, good shots, she always tries to attack on the grass. This is the best tactic on grass.”
Osaka showed off her new look again before winning her second round match.
Osaka, whose fashion shows have become a Grand Slam event in their own right, wore a less sophisticated outfit to take the stage than the Kill Bill-themed kimono she wore in her first-round match.
It still attracted a lot of attention as she walked from the locker room to the second court, followed by photographers and fans wanting to take their own photos.
The all-white outfit featured a wide belt and long train, which the four-time major winner removed as she began warming up for her match against qualifier Hasanova, which ended in just 67 minutes.
“I’m just trying to mix it up a little bit,” Osaka said of her outfit, adding that she was worried the loss might have ruined her daughter Shai’s third birthday on Thursday.
“I just wanted to be here longer. I didn’t want to force her to get on a plane on her birthday.”
Kasatkina didn’t make it past the third round here either, but if she can replicate the form she showed in the middle set against Thien, she has a real chance.
Having stated before the tournament that she had “very low expectations”, she said her confidence was growing.
“In tennis it’s very easy. You win matches, you feel better. You lose matches, you feel worse,” she said.
“The first match I won is what we call a ‘dirty win,’ when you win with anything, just by being there and fighting.
“Today we played better. We chose the right actions and executed them well, so we are very happy with today.”
French Open champion brought to tears by early defeat
Mirra Andreeva fell to the ground after the French Open. (Getty Images: Shi Tang)
It took seven match points but Barbora Krejcikova eventually knocked out French Open champion Mirra Andreeva in the biggest upset of the women’s tournament, winning 4-6, 7-5, 6-4.
Andreeva had six match points as 2024 Wimbledon winner Krejcikova served for the match at 5-3 and saved them all before finally converting her fourth break point in a marathon game.
The 19-year-old Russian gave her opponent a seventh match point when she sent a backhand wide in the next game, and this time Krejcikova converted with a bit of luck as her shot hit the net and bounced home, with Andreeva responding with a long shot.
Fifth seed Andreeva, who won her first Grand Slam title at Roland Garros less than a month ago, threw her racquet away in disgust and then smashed it on her bag before leaving Center Court.
“What a match,” Krejcikova said, trying to sum it up.
Barbora Krejcikova won Wimbledon in 2024. (Getty Images: Clive Brunskill)
At the post-match press conference, Andreeva was asked how difficult it was for her to cope with the emotions of defeat, and she had to pause to wipe away tears before she answered.
“I think I’ll need a couple of days,” she said before stopping and being offered tissues and the option to stop talking to the media.
“Sorry. This will take some time. Perhaps a couple of days. Then I will return to training on hard courts.
“I don’t know where the next tournaments will be held. I still need to talk to my team to find out where I will play next.”
Earlier, in two sets in a row, Aryna Sabalenka took the lead in the rankings, and Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka also reached the third round.
Krejcikova is a two-time Grand Slam winner, as well as the 2021 French Open title, but has battled back and knee injuries and slipped to 38th in the rankings.
Andreeva showed signs of frustration throughout the third set, including when her bead bracelet broke during a 1-1 tie and she had to spend several minutes picking beads from the grass along the baseline and tossing them to the back of the court.
Two children playing ball and a chair umpire joined her in cleaning up before play resumed.
During the third set there was also loud applause that had nothing to do with tennis. Some of the spectators on center court were half-watching England’s World Cup match against Congo and cheering both Harry Kane’s goals and the final whistle.
Gauff celebrates breakthrough anniversary
Gauff emerged from a breakdown in the third set and then won the final six points in the tiebreak to beat Solana Sierra 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (9/7).
Gauff was two points away from losing the match when Sierra served at 5–4 in the third set, but won three straight points to fight back.
She trailed 7-4 in the 10-point tiebreaker but didn’t drop a single point, sealing the win with an ace and then screaming loudly while clenching both fists.
“When she had to serve for the match, I just reminded myself that I’m a great returner too,” Gauff said.
“I was just trying to be positive and I think it showed.”
Gauff made her breakthrough at Wimbledon in 2019 when she reached the fourth round as a 15-year-old, beating Venus Williams in the first round.
But while she has since won both the US Open and the French Open, she has yet to reach the quarter-finals of the All England Club, despite two more trips to the fourth round.
It so happened that the victory over Williams took place seven years ago, on the same court.
“That was kind of my breakthrough moment and playing against one of my idols was crazy,” Gauff said.
“Every time I walk down this corridor I get déjà vu and I just remind myself: if I could have done this (seven) years ago, I would definitely be a better player since then. So I can definitely do that now.”
Sabalenka soon reached the third round, defeating McCartney Kessler 6–1, 7–6 (11/9) on the first court.
ABC/AP/AAP