Osaka Upsets No. 1 Sabalenka, Reaches First Wimbledon QF
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- Naomi Osaka defeated No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka 6-2, 7-6 (2) in less than 1½ hours, overpowering her with flat groundstrokes on a day the temperature reached 82°F — her first Wimbledon quarterfinal appearance.
- Osaka entered the match 0-13 against top-10 players at non-hard-court events and had lost all three 2025 meetings with Sabalenka (French Open, Indian Wells, Madrid), making the straight-sets upset her first win over a No. 1 since 2019 Beijing over Ash Barty.
- Sabalenka saw her streak of 14 straight Grand Slam quarterfinal-or-better appearances (second-longest by a woman since 2000) and her Open-era record of 21 consecutive major tiebreaks won come to an end.
- Osaka dominated statistically — 8-5 in aces, 21-15 in winners, and 87% first serves in (vs. Sabalenka's 69%) — and saved both break points she faced before Sabalenka netted a backhand on match point.
- Karolina Muchova awaits Osaka in the quarterfinals after upsetting 2024 Wimbledon champion Barbora Krejcikova 7-5, 5-7, 6-3, while Sabalenka said post-match she wanted to 'get completely drunk' and 'get in better shape.'
- Osaka credited her mother's Japanese cooking for 'powering' her run and celebrated by spinning with her racket over her head on Centre Court — her first career win there.
Why it matters: Osaka's win bookends a comeback story the article makes explicit: this was her first victory over a world No. 1 since 2019, before her 2021 mental-health break and the 2023 maternity leave that cost her a full season. For Sabalenka, a four-time major champion, the loss ends a 14-major quarterfinal streak and a 21-tiebreak Open-era record — and her post-match 'get completely drunk' quote signals frustration after a second straight Grand Slam early exit.
