Naomi Osaka delivered her biggest Wimbledon win yet Saturday, beating world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka 6-2, 7-6(2) in the fourth round. She gave a reason beyond tennis for the victory.
The win on Sunday sends Osaka to her first career quarterfinal at Wimbledon
The secret weapon, according to Osaka, was not just her serve or baseline power. It was her mother’s cooking.
“My mom’s over there,” Osaka said in her on-court interview after the game. “She cooks a lot and I feel like her cooking is powering me. Mom, I would really appreciate another meal tonight. Thank you so much.”
More specifically, Osaka also thanked her culture when discussing what she actually ate.
“A bunch of Japanese food, so shout out Japanese food,” Osaka said, whose family is staying with her in London.
The meal-powered run has now pushed Osaka into unfamiliar territory on grass.
The four-time Grand Slam champion, who also credited the work new coach Tomasz Wiktorowski has put in changing her grass-court approach, recorded eight aces against Sabalenka and closed the match in under 90 minutes.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve had so much fun on the court, and to do it here, it really means a lot,” Osaka said. “Going into this match, I lost to her three times in a row, so that really sucked. I wanted to turn it over, and I’m really glad I had the opportunity to do that.”
That context is what made the win so significant.
Sabalenka had beaten Osaka three times already this season, including at the French Open.
Osaka’s victory also ended Sabalenka’s streak of 14 straight Grand Slam quarterfinal appearances in majors she played, while awarding her a first straight-sets Grand Slam loss since the 2020 U.S. Open.
Earlier this season, Osaka reached the fourth round at Roland Garros, yet lost to Sabalenka there.
She then built momentum on grass by reaching the Bad Homburg final before retiring with a foot issue against Karolina Muchova. At Wimbledon, she has now gone 4-0 without dropping a set.
She will face Muchova again in the quarterfinals Tuesday with a chance to reach her first Grand Slam semifinal since winning the 2021 Australian Open.
