Osaka ‘actually excited to face’ Swiatek at French Open

Naomi Osaka says she is “actually excited” to face red-hot match favorite Iga Swiatek within the French Open second spherical on Wednesday, when males’s title contenders Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz are additionally in motion.

Former world primary Osaka received a match at a Grand Slam occasion for the primary time for the reason that 2022 Australian Open together with her opening victory over Lucia Bronzetti.

The Japanese star returned earlier this 12 months after a 16-month hiatus from tennis to start out a household.

Osaka has by no means received previous the third spherical at Roland Garros, with all 4 of her Grand Slam titles having come on laborious courts in Australia and the USA.

She mentioned she prevented wanting on the draw, however realised she may face Swiatek throughout her pre-tournament press convention.

“I used to be, like, ‘Why does everybody hold asking me about this draw?’,” Osaka mentioned.

“Then I knew that I used to be within the high half, so I used to be, like, jokingly, ‘Properly, it isn’t like I am enjoying Iga’. Then everybody received quiet. So I used to be like, ‘Oh’.”

Osaka will likely be a giant underdog towards Swiatek within the pair’s first ever assembly on clay and solely third match on any floor.

Swiatek is bidding to turn into solely the fourth lady within the Open period to carry 4 Roland Garros titles and simply the second — after Serena Williams — to finish the clay-court treble of Madrid, Rome and French Opens in the identical season.

“I am actually actually excited. I watched her rather a lot after I was pregnant,” mentioned Osaka of her opponent.

“And actually, I feel it is an honour to play her within the French Open, as a result of she’s received greater than as soon as right here, for certain. It is a very massive honour and problem for me.”

Osaka received her first assembly with a then-teenage Swiatek in Toronto in 2019, whereas the Pole got here out on high of their different conflict within the 2022 Miami Open remaining.

The 22-year-old Swiatek shouldn’t be going to take something as a right towards Osaka, who confirmed flashes of her greatest type in Rome earlier this month, knocking out seeds Marta Kostyuk and Daria Kasatkina en path to the final 16.

“The matches that we performed on laborious court docket have been at all times actually intense and difficult,” mentioned the present world primary.

“So I am simply glad that she got here again and he or she’s enjoying extra tournaments even than earlier than the break.

“These days within the ladies’s draw you possibly can play Grand Slam champions early within the match.

“It’s fairly tough as a result of you realize these gamers are actually skilled. In addition they achieved many nice issues. In order that they have an even bigger form of perception…

“So for certain it isn’t gonna be simple.”

– Sinner faces Gasquet –

Males’s second seed Sinner must quieten the French crowd when he faces house favorite Richard Gasquet within the evening session match.

The Australian Open champion arrived on the match below an harm cloud after withdrawing from Madrid and skipping Rome with a hip drawback.

Sinner cruised to a first-round win over Christopher Eubanks, although, and insisted he was feeling near full health.

“The hip is nice, I am very glad,” he mentioned. “The overall form is not at one hundred pc but so we’re making an attempt to construct on daily basis.”

Wimbledon champion Alcaraz additionally missed out on Rome with a proper arm harm, however was in fantastic type in his Roland Garros opener, dropping simply 4 video games towards American fortunate loser J.J. Wolf.

He will likely be anticipated to have few issues towards Dutch qualifier Jesper de Jong on Courtroom Suzanne Lenglen.

Elsewhere on Wednesday, males’s sixth seed Andrey Rublev, former French Open runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas and ladies’s Wimbledon winner Marketa Vondrousova additionally goal locations within the final 32.

jc/dj