Tennis-Rybakina thumps Osaka to reach US Open quarters, close in on top ranking网球——莱巴金娜击败大阪直美晋级美网八强，距离世界第一仅一步之遥
NEW YORK, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Elena Rybakina cleared another big hurdle in her bid to win a third Grand Slam title by outclassing former U.S. Open champion Naomi Osaka 6-1 6-4 on Monday to reach the quarter-finals at Flushing Meadows.
Tennis - U.S. Open - Flushing Meadows, New York, United States - September 7, 2026 Kazakhstan's Elena Rybakina in action during her round of 16 match against Japan's Naomi Osaka REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz
NEW YORK, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Elena Rybakina cleared another big hurdle in her bid to win a third Grand Slam title by outclassing former U.S. Open champion Naomi Osaka 6-1 6-4 on Monday to reach the quarter-finals at Flushing Meadows.
The flawless victory for Rybakina, who won Wimbledon in 2022 and this year's Australian Open, booked a last-eight clash with Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen and left the Kazakh one match win away from becoming world number one for the first time.
"Of course I want it. I don't know anyone who wouldn't wish for it. It's definitely one of my goals," said Rybakina, shortly after reaching her maiden quarter-finals in New York.
"I'll try to approach (the match) the same way and try to do everything I can. Fight till the end in my next match. Let's see what's going to happen.
"If I serve as well as I did today, I think I have all the chances. I'll try my best. Hopefully it's going to go my way."
Second seed Rybakina raced through the opening set in 22 minutes, converting two of her three break-point opportunities before sealing it with a booming serve to leave two-times New York champion Osaka on the ropes at Louis Armstrong Stadium.
"I didn't expect that. I thought I played really well, I was feeling the ball well," added Rybakina.
"Naomi's a tough opponent. I knew that no matter the score I needed to focus on each ball as everything can change quickly.
"She's a very aggressive player, so I'm so glad about the way I played today."
The 13th-seeded Osaka, who had arrived in style in a fur-collared overcoat that featured oversized signage, a mural-like city scene and a portrait, showed greater resistance early in the second set, but Rybakina soon seized control again.
Osaka clutched her left leg at 2-2 in the second set, still feeling the effects of an Achilles niggle that flared up in the third round, but the 28-year-old managed to save a break point and stay in the fight.
Rybakina continued to heap pressure on Osaka with her deep groundstrokes and earned the decisive break in the seventh game when her Japanese opponent hit a forehand into the net, before she closed out the match in only 66 minutes.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in New YorkEditing by Christian Radnedge)
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网球——美国网球公开赛——美国纽约法拉盛草地网球场——2026年9月7日，哈萨克斯坦选手埃琳娜·莱巴金娜在与日本选手大坂直美的16强赛中比赛。（路透社/爱德华多·穆尼奥斯摄）
纽约，9 月 7 日（路透社）——周一，埃琳娜·莱巴金娜以 6-1 6-4 击败前美国网球公开赛冠军大坂直美，晋级法拉盛草地网球场四分之一决赛，向着赢得第三个大满贯冠军的目标又迈出了重要一步。
莱巴金娜在2022年温布尔登网球公开赛和今年的澳大利亚网球公开赛上都取得了完美胜利，她将在四分之一决赛中对阵奥运冠军郑勤文，距离首次成为世界第一仅差一场胜利。
“我当然想要。我不认识任何人不想要。这绝对是我的目标之一，”莱巴金娜在纽约首次晋级四分之一决赛后不久说道。
“我会尽量用同样的方式对待这场比赛，尽我所能。下一场比赛我会战斗到最后一刻。让我们拭目以待。”
“如果我能像今天这样发挥出色，我觉得我很有机会。我会全力以赴。希望一切顺利。”
二号种子莱巴金娜仅用 22 分钟就拿下首盘，三次破发机会把握住两次，随后以一记势大力沉的发球锁定胜局，将两届纽约冠军大阪直美在路易斯·阿姆斯特朗球场逼入绝境。
“我没想到会这样。我觉得自己打得很好，球感也不错，”雷巴金娜补充道。
“娜奥米是个难缠的对手。我知道无论比分如何，我都必须专注于每一个球，因为一切都可能瞬息万变。”
“她是一位非常有攻击性的球员，所以我很高兴我今天的表现。”
13号种子大阪直美身穿一件饰有超大标牌、壁画般的城市景观和肖像的毛领大衣，以时尚的姿态亮相。她在第二盘开局阶段表现出了更强的抵抗力，但莱巴金娜很快又重新掌控了比赛。
在第二盘2-2平局时，大阪直美捂着左腿，仍然能感受到第三回合跟腱伤势复发的影响，但这位28岁的选手还是挽救了一个破发点，继续留在比赛中。
莱巴金娜凭借其深远的底线击球继续向大阪直美施加压力，并在第七局凭借对手正手击球下网而取得决定性的破发，最终仅用时 66 分钟就结束了比赛。
（纽约 Shrivathsa Sridhar 报道，Christian Radnedge 编辑）
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