Naomi Osaka reaches quarterfinals at Pan Pacific Open
OSAKA, Japan — Top-seeded Naomi Osaka reached the quarterfinals at the Pan Pacific Open by beating qualifier Viktoriya Tomova 7-5, 6-3 on Wednesday.
Osaka, who was broken twice early in the match, is looking to win her first title in her hometown after finishing runner-up in 2016 and 2018.
Article continues after this advertisementShe will next meet either Yulia Putintseva or Russian qualifier Varvara Flink.
Also, fourth-seeded Angelique Kerber won her first match since Wimbledon, beating American qualifier Nicole Gibbs 6-2, 6-4.
“The goal now is to finish the year as well as I can, to put all the energy which I have into this run in Asia and to play well in the next few weeks,” Kerber said.
Article continues after this advertisementKerber will next face Madison Keys, who defeated Zarina Diyas 5-7, 6-0, 6-4.
“I know Madison really well, so I know what to expect,” Kerber said. “It will be interesting. We both know we have to play our best against each other.”
Elise Merterns also advanced, beating Hsieh Su-Wei 6-3, 1-6, 6-2 win.
At the Korea Open in Seoul, second-seeded Ekaterina Alexandrova recovered well to beat Kristyna Pliskova 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 and reach the quarterfinals.
Alexandrova will next play Kristie Ahn. The American advanced by beating Ana Bogdan of Romania 0-6, 6-4, 7-6 (2).
Magda Linette also reached the quarterfinals, defeating Anastasia Potapova 7-5, 7-6 (4). The fourth-seeded Linette will next meet Kirsten Flipkens, who upset seventh-seed Margarita Gasparyan 6-3, 7-5.