Not since the indefatigable Spaniard Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario came from behind to oust Steffi Graf in the 1994 final had a woman prevailed in a US Open final from a set down. It is a tall task to realize that feat in any major final, and it takes not only steadfastness and resilience but also immense poise and professionalism.
That is why Naomi Osaka should be unabashedly proud of her 1-6, 6-3, 6-3 final-round triumph over Victoria Azarenka for her second US Open and third Grand Slam title. The 31-year-old from Belarus came out of the blocks playing sparkling tennis. Having lost to Serena Williams in hard-fought, three-set finals at the US Open in 2012 and 2013, she was determined to make amends this time around and get her hands on the trophy. Azarenka has won 20 of her career total of 21 WTA titles on hard courts, including her back-to-back victories at the Australian Open in 2012 and 2013.
She, too, wanted a third major in her collection very badly. No woman had ever endured a seven year stretch between major title wins without claiming one of the premier crowns, but a revitalized and powerfully driven Azarenka was executing so well off the ground and serving with such sharp efficiency that Osaka could not initially get her teeth into the contest.
In the opening game, Osaka made three unprovoked mistakes off the forehand, double faulted once, and lost her serve. Azarenka followed with an impeccable service game, holding at love without missing a first serve. By the middle of the third game, Osaka had already made six unforced errors while Azarenka had none. Although Osaka held in that game, she was clearly ill at ease and unprepared for the depth, variation, aggression and consistency of Azarenka.
On her way to 3-1, Azarenka produced a couple of winners and refused to miss a first serve. Osaka was discombobulated. She double faulted at 30-30 in the fifth game and then was caught off guard by Azarenka’s return of serve at break point down. Osaka erred off the forehand, pressing to find an opening that wasn’t there. It was 4-1 for Azarenka, and her two break advantage was a sizable cushion.
As Azarenka came out after the changeover to serve in the sixth game, only 18 minutes had elapsed in the match. She was pushed hard for the first time on her delivery but Osaka’s ground game remained highly vulnerable. To 5-1 went an unflagging Azarenka, and remarkably she then broke Osaka for the third time. Osaka had a game point that Osaka erased emphatically with a backhand return winner off a 112 MPH first serve. Underlining her supremacy, Azarenka sealed the set, 6-1, two points later with a backhand-down-the-line winner.
Osaka boosters surely hoped she would make her move at the outset of the second set and find a way to disrupt the astonishing rhythm of Azarenka while cutting down significantly on her own mistakes. But that was plainly not the case.
Azarenka secured the opening game of the second set on serve and then broke Osaka for a 2-0 lead, succeeding as she had in the first set so regularly with a solid return of serve setting up a backhand down the line that was as good as a winner. Azarenka established a 40-30 lead in the third game and was poised to extend her lead to 3-0. She had put 25 of 28 first serves in play. She was giving away nothing whatsoever from the backcourt. She was playing this match almost entirely on her own terms.
But on that important game point for 3-0, she did not get quite enough mustard on her backhand down the line. Osaka answered with an excellent forehand down the line. She soon cut Azarenka’s lead to 2-1, breaking serve for the first time, and released two aces on her way to 2-2.
Nevertheless, Azarenka remained composed and confident, holding for 3-2 at 15 with two aces. That game, however, was only a brief reprieve for Azarenka because Osaka had found her range off the ground and her rhythm on serve. The No. 4 seed poured in four straight first serves and held at love with an ace for 3-3. She broke at 15 for 4-3 after an apprehensive Azarenka commenced that seventh game with a double fault.
Osaka was feeling the ball much more convincingly now. In holding for 5-3 at the cost of only two points, she served an ace for 40-30 and concluded that game with a scorching backhand-down-the-line winner. She had captured three consecutive games and 12 of 15 points in the process.
Both players fully understood the significance of the ninth game of the second set. A service break for Osaka would enable her to start serving in the third and final set, and a hold from Azarenka might have halted her opponent’s unmistakable momentum. In a five deuce, 16 point game. Azarenka had five game points but Osaka was unrelenting. She broke through on her second break point, sealing the set 6-3, going behind Azarenka and connecting for a forehand down the line winner.
