Goerges knocks out Osaka and advances to Charleston quarterfinals

Julia Goerges (photo by Daniel Ward)

Volvo Car Open 5th seed Julia Goerges of Germany strengthened her Charleston campaign this morning with a straight set win over 10th seed Naomi Osaka. The first set was hard-fought by both opponents, and Goerges finished it with a 7-4 tiebreak. Goerges, one of the best servers on the tour, hit eight aces, and finished with first- and second serve win percentages of 71 and 58, respectively. Georges, who used both her serve and her game's signature variety to out

Naomi Osaka (photo by Daniel Ward)

wit Osaka, hit 27 winners and made 20 unforced errors.

After the match, Osaka revealed that yesterday morning, she woke up feeling "very depressed, but I don't know why." Osaka said "it comes in waves." One can assume that the stress of having won Indian Wells and achieving tennis stardom may have the young Japanese player somewhat overwhelmed, and also, that she may be quite mentally tired.

Meanwhile, 8th seed Anastaija Sevastova made a second consecutive quarterfinal run by defeating 9th seed Ash Barty 6-3, 6-4, and defending champion and 3rd seed Daria Kasatkina defeated 13th seed Irina-Camelia Begu 6-2, 6-1.

Speaking with the press after her match, Kasatkina--who had a difficult time in her opening match--talked about her mixed feelings regarding being the defending champion. "Nobody told me it's so difficult to come and defend a title," she said. Asked what it feels like to look at the stadium and see her face on it, she replied: "It's awkward....It's very nice, but at the same time, it's, yeah, put a little bit of pressure on you because everybody is asking you if I saw this big picture on the stadium. Like I think everybody saw it in the city...."

7th seed Madison Keys, who was the runner-up in 2015, defeated Camila Giorgi in straight sets, and Bernarda Pera defeated wild card Sara Errani 6-3, 2-6, 6-4. The left-handed, Croatian-born Pera, who plays for the USA, is ranked number 101 in the world. Pera was a lucky loser at the 2018 Australian Open, where she upset 9th-seeded Johanna Konta in the second round.