Naomi Osaka upset by Leylah Fernandez at U.S. Open

Leylah Fernandez of Canada, right, shakes hands with Naomi Osaka of Japan after a third-round match of the U.S. Open. Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports

Naomi Osaka upset by Leylah Fernandez in third round at U.S. Open

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Larry Brown | Last updated 9/3/21

Naomi Osaka’s streak of disappointing finishes continues.

Osaka, who won the U.S. Open last year, was knocked out of the tournament early this year. She was defeated by Leylah Fernandez in three sets on Friday night, losing 5-7, 7-6, 6-4.

The 18-year-old pulled off a big upset against Osaka, who is the first top-10 seed on the women’s side of the U.S. Open to lose this year.

Osaka seemed to have difficulty with the look Fernandez presented as a lefty:

Leylah Fernandez upsets Naomi Osaka (3) at the #USOpen

This is Fernandez's first win over a top-3 ranked player in the world pic.twitter.com/Z4CikYwNIs

— ESPN (@espn) September 4, 2021

Osaka slammed her racket numerous times in the defeat, indicating clear frustration she was experiencing. She also committed five unforced errors while losing a second-set tiebreak.

Osaka has had a bad run over the last several months. Although she won the Australian Open early in the year, she struggled on clay and developed some fears over playing on the surface. That led to her issues that resulted in her withdrawal from the French Open.

Osaka missed Wimbledon but returned for the Western & Southern Open, where she lost in the third round. Osaka also lost in the third round at the Olympics and has now made a third-round exit at the U.S. Open.

Osaka is the best hardcourt player in women’s tennis. Her failures to get past the third round of three straight hardcourt events suggests she is not past her mental health issues and that she could use some time off to rebuild her confidence.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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