World No 44 Naomi Osaka of Japan stormed into the finals of the WTA Indian Wells tournament on Friday. She defeated World No 1 Simona Halep 6-3, 6-0.
"I just was not ready. I missed the ball a lot and I didn't play what I had to play," Halep said, The Firstpost reported.
She added. "I don't find excuses. She was better. I just was not ready and played wrong."
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Osaka started off her campaign in the tournament by beating Maria Sharapova in the first round. She defeated No 31 Agnieszka Radwanska and No 5 Karolina Pliskova on her way to the final, dropping just one set in six matches.
Halep, on the other hand, was eyeing to repeat her Indian Wells success. Three years ago, she beat Jelena Jankovic to lift the trophy.
In another game, Daria Kasatkina trounced Venus Williams 4-6, 6-4, 7-5 in a game that lasted 2 hours, 48 minutes. She defeated and overpowered her third top-10 player in a row, shocking world number eight Williams.
Now Osaka will face off Kasatkina in the final on Sunday
“In one moment you just catch yourself, like, you’re in night session, all crowd, you’re playing against a legend, and you are in the third set,” Kasatkina said, The Indian Express reported. “You’re just staying on the return, and you’re like, `Come on, maybe it’s the moment of your life.”
“If I don’t win, I’m not happy,” Williams said. “You don’t get used to losses, ever. Anyone who gets used to losses should give up on life.”
Williams breathed heavily during changeovers and was the last to leave her chair. Asked if she was tired, Williams said, “She just played better at the end.”
Feature Image Credit: WION
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