By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Wednesday March 31, 2021
Naomi Osaka’s 23-match winning streak came to a halt on Wednesday in Miami, and along with it her chances of reclaiming the No.1 ranking. The Japanese star was knocked off by Maria Sakkari 6-0, 6-4 and afterwards stated that it’s not all bad—there were elements of her performance that she liked in Miami.
“I feel I played worse here possibly but I fought more,” she said of the quarterfinal loss on Wednesday. “So I think I am improving in that way, because I feel like even if you’re not playing great you should still find ways to win. I’m trying to find ways to do that.”
Osaka was still entertaining hopes of finishing the week at No.1, but instead it will be Ash Barty who remains at the top of the WTA rankings. Osaka would have had to claim the title, with Barty advancing to the semifinals already on Tuesday in Miami.
Now the World No.2, who has already spent 25 weeks at No.1; Barty will begin her 70th week at No.1 on Monday and is guaranteed to reach at least 74 weeks.
The only female players in history with more weeks at #1 than Ash Barty (74 weeks guaranteed):Steffi Graf, Martina Navratilova, Serena Williams, Chris Evert, Martina Hingis, Monica Seles, Justine Henin, Lindsay Davenport.
— Tumaini Carayol (@tumcarayol) March 31, 2021
Osaka says she can chalk the loss up as another experience and move on to the clay, where the pressure to perform will be lessened by the fact that she really isn’t considered a force on the surface. She still hasn’t won a title on clay and owns an 18-13 lifetime record on the surface with just one semifinal to her name. On grass she is 11-9 lifetime with one semifinal.
“Definitely I’d love to win a tournament on clay,” she said. “I think for me I’m going to learn a lot from Wim [coach Wim Fissette]. “He’s very energetic and excited to move on to the new surfaces. I feel like no matter what I’ll have more freedom on the clay courts and the grass than on hard, because I feel like I’m still learning a lot on those surfaces.”