Naomi Osaka has achieved a great deal in her career. A four-time Grand Slam champion and former World No. 1, it’s hard to believe she still has firsts left to chase.
Bad Homburg: Scores | Order of play | Draws
But after defeating Wang Xinyu 6-3, 6-3 on Friday in Bad Homburg, Osaka checked off another milestone by reaching her first WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz grass-court final. She needed just 70 minutes to close out her first career meeting with Wang.
“It’s funny to still be (achieving) milestones at my old age,” Osaka said afterward with a laugh. “For me, it’s really fun and I’m really happy.”
Osaka will face Karolina Muchova, another first-time grass-court finalist in Saturday’s championship match. The No. 4 seed advanced with a 6-4, 6-4 win over qualifier Elena-Gabriela Ruse in 1 hour and 40 minutes in a match extended by an extreme heat delay of more than 90 minutes between sets.
Osaka and Muchova have met five times, with Osaka holding a 3-2 edge in the head-to-head. She won both of their matchups last season in the Australian Open second round and the US Open quarterfinals, but this will be their first meeting on grass.
Osaka serves big, controls tempo in semifinal win
The 28-year-old has looked as sharp as ever has on grass this week, not dropping a set in wins over Magdalena Frech, Elise Mertens, Ekaterina Alexandrova and Wang. Against Wang, she again dominated behind her first serve, striking eight aces and winning 79% of her first-serve points. She faced only one break point.
With temperatures climbing toward 100 degrees Fahrenheit, Osaka came out aggressive, hitting four of her 11 winners in the opening game. She then settled in, slowing the pace and forcing Wang to go big in an effort to shorten points in the heat.
Osaka pounced first, breaking for 4-2 and never looking back to take the first set. She struck first in the second as well, capitalizing on a rash of unforced errors off Wang’s forehand, the shot behind her best moments and her unraveling.
Wang earned her lone break in the next game to level at 2-2, but Osaka responded immediately, making it three straight breaks to regain control at 3-2. More errors sealed Wang’s fate, including back-to-back double faults that sent Osaka into the final and into position for more firsts.
The next milestone would be her first grass-court title, which would also mark her first title since the 2021 Australian Open. Since lifting that trophy five years ago, Osaka has lost three tour-level finals. And while she won a WTA 125 title last year in Saint-Malo on clay, a title in Bad Homburg would be her first tour-level title on a surface other than hard courts.
But Saint-Malo still holds a special place in Osaka’s heart, in the same way Bad Homburg would with a win Saturday.
“I know people don’t count it, but I won a clay tournament,” Osaka said. “I know it’s a (WTA 125), so it doesn’t really count for the WTA, but for me it meant a lot because it was on clay. And obviously this one would mean a lot because it’s on grass and those are surfaces that I haven’t won on before.
“So in that regard it would mean a lot, but otherwise I just came here with the goal of playing matches before Wimbledon, and I was able to accomplish that. Hopefully I win one more tomorrow.”
Muchova survives intense heat, tense second set to book spot in final
In high-pressure situations, in unbearable heat, leave it to Muchova to stay cool as a cucumber.
The Czech broke Ruse in the final game of both sets to earn the win. The last break came after Ruse broke Muchova as she served for the match at 5-3, moments after Muchova failed to convert two match points on Ruse’s serve at 5-2. Despite Ruse raising her level and the punishing conditions affecting both players, Muchova remained composed, closing out the victory and even joking afterward.
“In this heat, I don’t remember what (happened) a minute ago,” Muchova said in her on-court interview. “I don’t know what’s happening here in Bad Homburg. This weather is crazy. I’m surprised that again, I’ll repeat myself, there’s so many people here. I don’t know how you guys do it.
“And yeah, I mean we had the break. Me and my team went to the village, had some bread, had some time off, so that was nice. I think she started to play very good at the end so I’m happy I managed to get the break and I’m happy I can go for another drink now.”
Moving beyond the tense conclusion and the laughs that followed, Muchova will surely like plenty about her performance, including winning 85% of her first-serve points and once again hitting more winners than unforced errors (18 to 15).
Even with the tight scoreline and Ruse’s opportunities, including a chance to break for 5-4 in the opening set that Muchova saved with a volley winner before breaking in the next game to take the set, Muchova appeared to maintain control for most of the match.
That control will be much harder to find in the final against Osaka, who has repeatedly said how much she enjoys playing in the heat that has plagued Bad Homburg throughout the week. Conditions will still be plenty warm Saturday, though slightly less severe after the final was moved to the morning.
“I think everyone knows I love the heat,” Osaka said. “I feel like the hotter it gets, the more it is to my advantage. But it’s not conditioning or anything. I just think I’m used to it.”
Whether that holds true in Saturday’s final remains to be seen. While Osaka is seeking her first title in five years, Muchova is aiming for her second of the season after winning the WTA 1000 event in Doha earlier this year. Of course, both players are also looking for their first grass-court title.
May the best woman win.