WTA Toronto: Naomi Osaka vs Ons Jabeur; Preview, Head-to-Head, and Prediction

Fasten your seatbelts for a heavyweight clash in Toronto! Japan’s Naomi Osaka takes on the Tunisian’s Ons Jabeur in the first round (R64) of the Canadian Open. Both the players have had quite a few ups and downs this season, they haven’t yet won a title this year. So, they will be keen to get one into their bags before the US Open.

Osaka is entering this contest after her early exit from the Paris Olympics at the hands of America’s Emma Navarro. However, Jabeur was last seen in action in the R3 of Wimbledon. She withdrew her name at the last moment from the Citi Open due to a minor shoulder injury. Hope she’s now fully fit to give a tough fight against the Japanese ace!

Naomi Osaka vs Ons Jabeur: Preview

Osaka returned to the Tour this year after her maternity leave. Although, she has played some really good tennis at some of the tournaments but has failed to hold on to that momentum. In her previous match, Kerber defeated her by 7-5,6-3. She hit 3 aces and committed 2 double faults in that match. Naomi Osaka won 77% of her first serve and 38% of her second serve. In the breakpoints, she could only convert 1/1. Before that Navarro, the 23-year-old tennis star, crushed Osaka in under an hour in straight sets, 6-4, 6-1, at Centre Court to move on to Wimbledon’s third round.

Whereas, Jabeur has made five QF appearances this year, but she has failed to perform when it mattered the most. Elina Svitolina defeated her 6-1,7-6(4) in the third round of Wimbledon. If we take a look at the stats from that match in Wimbledon, the Tunisian tennis star hit 2 aces and committed 2 double faults in the entire match. She won 68% of her first serve and 58% of her second serve, however, in the breakpoints Jabeur could record 0/2.

Osaka vs Jabeur: Head-to-Head

Two high-quality players take on each other in Toronto. Both of them have faced each other only once in their careers. Osaka clinched a comfortable victory last time. Osaka defeated Jabeur by 6-3,6-2 in the R3 of the 2021 Australian Open. Can Jabeur pull one back? 

Prediction: Osaka to win in straight sets

It’s time for the former world number one versus the former world number two! What a match to kick-start this tournament and fans couldn’t have asked for a better matchup. We all know Osaka shines bright on the hard courts. She has won four Grand Slam titles as of now and all of them came on this surface. The 26-year-old Japanese tennis star has a win-loss record of 16-14 this season and guess what? Even Jabeur has a win-loss record of 16-14! This is a perfect example of why this contest is going to be a close battle between the two.

However, if we look at their current rankings, the Tunisian has a fair bit of edge here. Jabeur is currently ranked 16th in the world, whereas Osaka is ranked 95th. It’s going to be Osaka’s aggressive baseline game versus Jabeur’s incredible variations on display. Jabeur has the ability to hit some extraordinary shots from extraordinary positions. She can even disguise her opponents with her incredible slices and drop shots. This is something that the Japanese superstar needs to be a bit careful of in this match.

If we look at Osaka’s strength, well, her excellent raw power in her serves and forehands are his biggest strength. She has hit 196 aces so far this season and will be keen to improve her numbers in this tournament. Osaka also has an incredible ability to win longer rallies. So, if the match goes deep like we have predicted, there’s going to be only one favorite in this epic clash! And that’s Osaka.