Osaka mulls break after loss, Tsitsipas stunned; Sabalenka and Andreescu book berths in quarters

Naomi Osaka looked announced to take a break form tennis following her loss against teenager to Leylah Fernandez, an 18-year-old from Canada who is ranked 73rd and never had been this far in Grand Slam competition.

“I feel like for me, recently, when I win, I don’t feel happy, I feel more like a relief. And then when I lose, I feel very sad,” Osaka said at her news conference following a 5-7, 7-6 (2), 6-4 loss at Flushing Meadows

“I don’t think that’s normal.”

“This is very hard to articulate,” she said, resting her left cheek in her hand. “Basically, I feel like I’m kind of at this point where I’m trying to figure out what I want to do, and I honestly don’t know when I’m going to play my next tennis match.”

“Yeah,” Osaka added as she rose to leave, “I think I’m going to take a break from playing for a while.”

Earlier, third seed Stefanos Tsitsipas was ousted from the US Open by 18-year-olds in epic stunners. Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz upset French Open runner-up Tsitsipas 6-3, 4-6, 7-6 (7/2), 0-6, 7-6 (7/5).

“Honestly the Alcaraz match gave me motivation and gave me the energy to do the same,” Fernandez said. “I saw his match and I saw the way he won and I’m like ‘I’m going to do that next now.’”

After the upset, defending champion Osaka announced she was taking a break from playing tennis.

“Incredible. Incredible feeling for me,” Alcaraz said. “This victory means a lot to me. It’s the best match of my career, the best win.

“To beat Stefanos Tsitsipas is a dream come true and to win here is even more special for me.”

“From the very beginning, right before the match, I knew I was able to win,” Fernandez said. “Thanks to New York fans. They helped me get the win.”

“I wanted to stay on court a little longer,” said Fernandez, who turns 19 on Monday. “One hour was just not enough for me.”

Fernandez then hit a forehand winner to break Osaka to start the third set.

Meanwhile, Aryna Sabalenka is on her way to face her Grand Slam doubles championship partner after she knocked off Danielle Collins 6-3, 6-3 at Louis Armstrong Stadium.

She’s into the second week of the US Open for the first time since 2018.

The second-seeded Sabalenka has a quarterfinal match-up against Elise Mertens. Sabalenka and Mertens won the 2019 US Open women’s doubles title. They also won the 2021 Australian Open doubles championship.

Sabalenka reached the semifinals at Wimbledon this year. She’s ranked No. 2 in the world and five of her 10 career WTA titles have come in the last 18 months.

Bianca Andreescu defeated Greet Minnen in the straight sets of 6-1, 6-2 to advance to the next round.

American tennis player Frances Tiafoe had a small, late-night crowd at Arthur Ashe Stadium going wild on every point in an upset win that pushed the record for the latest finish in tournament history.

Tiafoe outlasted fifth-seeded Andrey Rublev 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (6), 4-6, 6-1 and reached the fourth round for the second straight year. Tiafoe, Rublev and a few hundred fans were left on the grounds by the time the match ended.

There were three US Open finishes at 2:26 a.m., in 1993, 2012 and 2014.

Tiafoe had experienced five-set heartbreak before at Flushing Meadows. He lost to John Isner in 2016, Roger Federer in 2017 and Alexander Zverev in 2019 in five. Not this time. The 23-year-old fan favorite stripped off his shirt and celebrated with fans, before he sat on the bench and shook his head at his accomplishment.

Tiafoe won the five-setter in 3 hours, 45 minutes. Tiafoe is the first American man to reach the second week at the US Open in consecutive years since Andy Roddick and Mardy Fish in 2011-12.

Agencies