2020 U.S. Open: Women’s Final Preview

When asked about an earlier comment on her ego, she spoke at length about how limiting her ego had helped her get through tougher matches.

The difference, she said, was that “instead of getting the ego damaged, I tried to remove that and learn from my mistakes.” She added that she had realized that being a tennis player “doesn’t make you better or worse than anybody else, that you’re still human, and all you can do is try to be the best version of yourself and keep improving.”

Osaka’s path to this final has been similar. She is on a 10-match winning streak, excluding her withdrawal from the Western Southern Open final, but she struggled earlier in the U.S. Open while managing her hamstring injury. The technical aspects of Osaka’s game have been unimpeachable for some time, but problems with mental strength and consistency have occasionally plagued her.

In her victory over Brady on Thursday evening, Osaka hit 35 winners compared with only 17 unforced errors in a match filled with baseline rallies. She came to net only five times over the course of two hours. The steady focus, holding up against an unrelenting onslaught from Brady, was a clear indication that Osaka would not be limited going into today’s match.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/12/sports/2020-us-open-womens-final-preview.html