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Naomi Osaka vs. Belinda
On Friday, Naomi Osaka will play Belinda Bencic in the third round of the Australian Open. This will be her first appearance since giving birth.
The two-time Australian champion bounced back on Wednesday with a victory over 20th seed Karolina Muchova; she hopes to reach the quarterfinals for the first time since her 2021 championship run.
Previous Matches and Head-to-head
Defeating the No. 20 seed Muchova 1-6, 6-1, 6-3 in Wednesday's second-round encounter at Melbourne Park, Osaka's joy was palpable.
After beating the Czech player, the four-time Grand Slam winner is back in the quarterfinals of a major for the first time since her heartbreaking departure in 2022 in Australia, where she was the defending champion.
The 27-year-old has been through a lot since then, including having a mother and coming back after a long layoff last season.
Despite coming close to defeating Iga Swiatek in Paris, Wimbledon, and the last major in the US, Osaka was unable to advance beyond the tournament opening in Australia and was eliminated in round two at the French Open.
With victories over Caroline Garcia (a player she lost to 12 months ago in Australia) and Muchova (a player she lost to at Flushing Meadows in 2024), the Japanese player should be feeling confident going into her sixth meeting with Bencic.
When the Swiss player resumed competitive play in October, she was only six months removed from giving birth. Despite this, she is now one win away from advancing to the fourth round of the Australian Open for the third time in a row.
The former world No. 4 Bencic is riding high into round three after her straight-set victories over seeded Jelena Ostapenko in the first round and Dutchwoman Suzan Lamens on Wednesday.
The 27-year-old Swiss player improved her record to 17-10 heading into Friday's match, having won 15 games in Australia. The only Grand Slam event where she has won more matches is the US Open (21).
If she wants to get back to the quarterfinals as she did in 2016 and 2023, Bencic will need to win the Australian Open for the 18th time by defeating a two-time winner in Osaka.
Head to head
Bencic is hoping for a fourth victory against the two-time champion in Australia in her sixth meeting against Osaka, who she leads in their head-to-head matchup, 3-2.
Even though she won their most recent match in Miami three years ago, the victory ended the Swiss lady's three-match losing streak. In 2019, she ended that losing streak by winning back-to-back matches against the Japanese player, which had begun in 2013.
Friday will be their second encounter at a Slam; Bencic defeated Osaka, who was defending the US Open title at the time, in New York six years ago and is aiming for a similar performance at the Australian Open.
Tournament so far
Naomi Osaka
First round: vs. Caroline Garcia 6-3 3-6 5-3
Second round: vs. Karolina Muchova 1-6 6-1 6-3
Belinda Bencic
First round: vs. Jelena Ostapenko 6-3 7-6[6]
Second round: vs. Suzan Lamens 6-1 7-6[3]
Our Predictions
Naomi Osaka will win @ 1.68 on Sky247.ng.
We anticipate another three-setter against Bencic, as Osaka has been patient in rounds one and two.
With an 80% victory percentage Down Under, the two-time Australian Open winner surpassed her 79% win rate at the US Open, demonstrating her mastery of both hard-court majors when everything clicks.
The four-time Grand Slam winner should win Friday's match in three sets, bringing their head-to-head record to three games played. Osaka's momentum seems to be increasing, and she has progressed farther than Bencic since returning to the women's circuit.
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