Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko staged a shocking comeback on Thursday to defeat four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka 2-6 6-4 6-1 claiming her maiden WTA 1000 title on the Canadian Open.
The 18-year-old staged a exceptional comeback after shedding the opening set to the Japanese former world primary, who had established a 3-0 lead as Mboko struggled with pricey service errors.
Nevertheless, the house favorite discovered her rhythm within the second set, breaking serve to determine a 5-2 lead. Osaka struggled to catch up, and her poor returns allowed Mboko to degree the match and drive a decider.
The decisive second got here within the third set, when Mboko took a 3-1 lead after saving 4 break factors in a pivotal fourth sport that gave her a agency grip on the match as she went on to assert the title after two hours and 4 minutes of play.
“I need to thank Naomi from an unbelievable match. I’ve all the time regarded as much as her once I was little or no. It is all the time nice to play with such a tremendous participant such as you,” Mboko stated.
“I could not be extra grateful,” she added.
Mboko, at the moment ranked eighty fifth on the planet, grew to become the primary Canadian to defeat three former Grand Slam champions in a single WTA occasion within the Open Period, with victories over Sofia Kenin, Coco Gauff and Elena Rybakina.
For Osaka, who was making an attempt to revive her profession after an inconsistent interval following her return from maternity go away, the defeat introduced her groundbreaking match to an finish.
This loss additionally prolonged Osaka’s title drought; her final triumph got here on the 2021 Australian Open.
—Reuters
