• Defending champion beats
Russian 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-2• Osaka limped out of previous match, in CincinnatiNaomi Osaka opened her
US Open title defence with a stuttering start but finished with aplomb to beat Russia’s Anna Blinkova 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-2.
Osaka returned to the scene of her first grand slam title preoccupied by a knee injury after she was forced to retire from her quarter-final match in Cincinnati. After limping off the court on 16 August she was resolute: “In the end, I’m going to play the US Open even if the doctor says no.”