MIAMI — Naomi Osaka learned to play tennis on the courts of Broward County, bouncing from Pembroke Pines to Pompano Beach to Cooper City to Miramar. She also learned how to handle South Florida’s heat and humidity, which proved helpful on Friday during her midday Miami Open second-round match.
Osaka, the world No. 2 and defending Australian and U.S. Open champion, extended her win streak to 22 matches with a 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 victory over unseeded Ajla Tomljanovic of Australia at the Grandstand Court outside Hard Rock Stadium. Tomljanovic also has South Florida ties. She trains in Boca Raton.
“I remember hitting at Evert [Academy, in Boca Raton] and Ajla was also practicing there, so it’s funny, I was thinking, ‘she’s probably the one person that doesn’t really mind the heat like me,’ ” Osaka said. “I feel like my body’s been able to adjust to the heat quite well. I actually like sweating and really hot conditions where you feel like you’re really pushing yourself as an athlete.”
Tomljanovic broke Osaka’s serve twice early to take a 4-2 lead. But Osaka, who was playing for the first time since the Australian Open, relied on her serve and eventually found her rhythm. She finished with 13 aces and won 81% of her first service points.
Although Osaka plays best on hard courts, and has had success at the Australian Open, U.S. Open, Indian Wells, Calif., and Cincinnati, she has never made the second week at the Miami Open. She has played the event four times and gotten no farther than the third round. She is determined to change that trend.
“I actually don’t feel any pressure, it’s not like I’m defending here,” she said. “I feel more fun, like excitement. I want to see how well I can do. I have so many really good memories here as a kid, not particularly this location. When I was a kid, I went to Key Biscayne. For me, it’s just more exciting to play here. And I get to see my mom and dad.”
Osaka, who is of Haitian-Japanese descent, is always a crowd favorite in Miami. Friday was no exception. “I always get a warm feeling from the fans when I play here.”
Other players who advanced Friday afternoon included top men’s seed Daniil Medvedev of Russia, who beat Yen-Hsun Lu of Taiwan 6-2, 6-2; Garbine Muguruza of Spain, who beat Chinese wild card Xinyu Wang 6-4, 6-1; American Jessica Pegula, who beat Australian wild card Storm Sanders 6-3, 6-4; and Taylor Fritz, who won an All-American match 6-2, 6-2 over Marcos Giron.
