A red-hot return: Naomi Osaka serves up style and a powerful first-round victory

Osaka overcomes early resistance to take First Set

Both players started with strong service games, but in the third game, Osaka capitalized on her first opportunity to get the first break of the match. Minnen, however, quickly broke back to tie the score at 2-2. The four-time Grand Slam champion remained calm, as usual, and kept her composure despite Minnen's consistent resistance from the baseline.

The Belgian player constantly used slices to prevent Osaka from hitting comfortably, but it didn't help much, as the Japanese star positioned herself well on the court to take the initiative in the points. This is how she took control of the game when she was down 2-3, winning the next four games in a row and taking advantage of the world No. 106's first-serve issues.

Osaka won 67% of her service points and 59% of her return points, being especially aggressive with her forehand. She hit 12 winners compared to her opponent's seven, and the unforced errors were more frequent on the European's side, with 14 compared to the Asian player's nine. Osaka won the first set 6-3 after 38 minutes, being relentless in capitalizing on all three of her break opportunities.

Osaka finds her momentum to seal second-round spot

The second set started with Osaka maintaining her confident form and taking the first two games without any issues. With a 2-0 lead for the former No. 1, Greet Minnen found a solution with her return, specifically by taking advantage of Osaka's second serves. She broke back in what was an erratic start to the second set for both players and tied again at 2-2.

Things weren't leaning for either player for the rest of the match. A scare came for the Japanese player around the middle of the set, after Minnen secured another break to go up 4-3 with the serve in her favor. Perhaps the hit was enough for Osaka to get a boost in the final part of the match, as she won 12 of the next 15 points and had two consecutive breaks, securing the 6-3, 6-4 victory and her spot in the second round.

Match Statistics Minnen vs. Osaka

A tricky match-up awaits

Naomi Osaka entered the draw as the 23rd seed, marking her first time as a seeded player in a Grand Slam in three years. This came after a strong showing at the Canadian Open, where she finished as the runner-up and advanced significantly in the rankings to the top 25. This achievement allowed her to enter the US Open main draw with a less complicated path in the early rounds.

Her next opponent will be 23-year-old Hailey Baptiste (No. 47), who defeated Czech player Katerina Siniakova in her debut. This was Baptiste's first main-draw victory at the US Open and also the first time she directly entered the main draw, after falling in the qualifying rounds for the last three editions.

The two have faced each other twice before this season in tough battles on hard courts. Both matches, in the Auckland quarterfinals and the Miami Open third round, were three-set victories for Osaka. Now, she will face one of the local players who seems to have nothing to lose and is playing with great confidence. Baptiste is undoubtedly a tricky opponent for the second round.