By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Thursday July 3, 2025
Photograph Supply: Henry Nicholls/Getty
We’ve heard a lot about who’s OUT of the Wimbledon ladies’s singles draw – are you able to say No.2, No.3, No.4 and No.5 seeds? – however what about who’s in?
Enter four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka, who reached the third spherical at Wimbledon for the primary time since 2018.
Osaka, ranked 53, will face Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova for a spot within the second week of a significant, and if she will be able to get by that match she’ll have reached the second week at a Slam for the primary time because the 2021 Australian Open.
The 27-year-old says she is making an attempt to maintain her expectations low after a season that has seen her put up some stable outcomes, however nothing earth-shattering by her personal lofty requirements.
“I am type of going with the stream,” Osaka informed reporters after defeating Katerina Siniakova on Day 3. “I had a chat with Patrick earlier than this event about expectations, so I am actually taking it one level at a time, and I am not making an attempt to consider the rounds an excessive amount of.”
Motion? “A Lot Extra Comfy”
For Osaka on the grass, it’s at all times been a problem. She says she is feeling extra comfy on the floor than she has shortly, nevertheless.
Lately, Osaka has been fearful about hurting herself on the slippery floor, however she’s now not working scared on the grass.
“I feel undoubtedly this yr I really feel much more comfy shifting on grass,” she mentioned. “I do know the final couple of years I used to be actually scared to maneuver, as a result of after I was youthful, I strained my knee or no matter. It took a few years to recover from that, however I undoubtedly really feel much more comfy.
“With age worry type of crept alongside and, I assume, paralyzed me in a means. Now I am type of simply getting over that and making an attempt to unfold my wings on grass. I feel it’s working, and I feel I’m shifting fairly nicely.”
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