Naomi Osaka narrowly avoided a monumental upset against world number 65 Antonia Ruzic.
Osaka, a two-time Australian Open champion, looked comfortable after taking the first set 6-3 but was quickly pegged back by Ruzic, who won the second set 6-3.
The Japanese star – who has been tipped to re-enter the WTA top 10 this year – was on the verge of exiting the tournament after being broken midway through the final set, handing Ruzic a 4-3 lead.
However, Osaka recovered quickly, winning the final three games to secure victory.
After the contest, Osaka revealed that she made a tactical shift during the third set; a change Osaka admits she should have made earlier in the contest.
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Credit: Sofascore
Naomi Osaka began hitting more shots to Antonia Ruzic’s forehand near the end of their Australian Open contest
After defeating Ruzic on Tuesday, Osaka praised her opponent’s performance, while noting her own shift in focus midway through the final set.
“I mean, honestly what was going in my head was that I thought my level was pretty good,” Osaka told reporters in Melbourne.
“If she’s playing at a level that’s higher than mine the entire time, then she deserves to win. Obviously I don’t want that to happen. But if it does, then it’s out of my hands because I’m literally doing the best that I can.
“I tried to change it up a little. I know she had, like, a really good backhand. I tried to hit more to her forehand. I tried to be a little bit more solid, then kind of accelerate when I could.
“Then obviously my serve came in really clutch at the end.
Later in the press conference, Osaka again reflected on the match, revealing that she expected to be pushed to three sets by Ruzic.
Osaka, who could be a contender for Grand Slam titles this year, also admitted that she made life ‘a little difficult’ for herself.
She said: “No, I mean, I think for me today, I obviously didn’t know much about her. Like, I’ve never played her before. I watched videos, of course.
“But going into matches like those, especially since she’s young, I kind of feel like the player has nothing to lose. Obviously I’m a little bit more stressed. I understood that it was going to be a tough match, like, from the very beginning because I think she had some good results coming into this tournament.
“For me, I definitely kind of expected this, like, three-set situation. Now you’re clocking me. So you know I’m a little stubborn.
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Credit: Sofascore
“I was understanding that her backhand was really good. But then I was, like, my backhand should be better. Realistically I should have changed, but sometimes I like making my life a little difficult for myself.
“Then obviously I started changing it, like, for the last three games. It became way easier. I kind of kicked myself in the head for that.
“Honestly it was kind of fun to kind of trade backhands. I hope that for me the last person that I played that had a really good backhand beat me. I hope that I, like, learned from this match, too.”
Naomi Osaka previews her match against Sorana Cirstea
In the Australian Open second round, Naomi Osaka will play world number 41 Sorana Cirstea.
Cirstea [pictured below], who is playing her 20th year on the Tour, announced in December 2025 that the 2026 campaign would be her last.
Cirstea, 35, defeated Eva Lys in the first round: 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.
Previewing her contest against the Romanian player, Osaka said: “Cirstea? I don’t know if I’ve played her before, but obviously I’ve seen her around quite a few times.
“I ironically did watch her match. She played Lys, no? I did watch that match before I was going on court.
“I didn’t even know she was my opponent. It seems like she was playing really good, pretty solid. I didn’t know the pace of the ball. Yeah, I think that will also be a really good match.”
Osaka and Cirstea played their only previous WTA Tour match 11 years ago at the 2015 Wimbledon Championships.
In the first round, Cirstea defeated 17-year-old Osaka 2-6, 6-1, 6-4.
