Former Miami Open finalist Naomi Osaka faced a scare in her first-round match against Ukrainian qualifier Yuliia Starodubtseva. Osaka had to fight back from a set and a break down to win with a score of 3-6, 6-4, 6-3. The match lasted for 2 hours and 28 minutes.

Osaka, who was a runner-up in Miami in 2022 to Iga Swiatek, hadn’t won a match since January’s Australian Open. In that tournament, she reached the third round but had to retire due to an abdominal injury. Before Miami, she also experienced a disappointing first-round loss at Indian Wells, which she described as the ‘worst of her career’.

This period has been frustrating for Osaka. She reached the final in Auckland at the beginning of the year and felt she was playing well before the injury setback. This recent history contributed to her nervousness at the Sunshine Double events this year.

Osaka told reporters that she is eager to compete at the highest level but understands it’s a gradual process to get back to her best form.

However, Osaka showed she had learned from her previous loss in Indian Wells as she played against Starodubtseva for the first time.

Osaka mentioned in an on-court interview that she knew she wasn’t playing perfectly but wanted to stay in the match and use her legs. She aimed to run and compete for every point, even if it meant a long three-hour match.

Starodubtseva, ranked lower, had also had a tough season leading up to Miami. However, she played well in qualifying and pushed Osaka hard. Starodubtseva took a strong lead in the first set and was close to winning in the second set as well.

Despite not needing a full three hours, former World No. 1 Osaka displayed great determination. This win marks her fourth three-set victory this year. Next, she will face No. 24 seed Liudmila Samsonova, against whom she has a split record from their two matches last year.

Turning point: Starodubtseva played almost flawlessly for the first set and a half. She effectively handled Osaka’s power, returning shots with depth and using angles and slices to her advantage. Even though she stumbled slightly while trying to close out the first set, she managed to save break points and gain a break in the second set.

Starodubtseva had opportunities to extend her lead further in the second set, but a couple of errors allowed Osaka to break back. Osaka then quickly won her service game, taking the lead in the second set. Starodubtseva couldn’t recover and lost the set.

Osaka’s first serve percentage was low in the first set, and her win rate on first serves was also uncharacteristically low. However, her serve improved as the match progressed, and she was very effective in the final set. She served much better in the deciding set and only faced two break points in the fifth game of that set, successfully saving both.

Osaka’s initial struggles in the match included double faults at the start, leading to an early break for her opponent. However, she recovered to serve 10 aces in total and finished the match strongly with consecutive service winners.