Naomi Osaka continued her mid-season resurgence by reaching the semi-finals of the 2025 US Open with a straight-sets victory over Karolina Muchova. The four-time major champion beat the 13th-ranked Czech 6-4, 7-6(3) in Arthur Ashe Stadium to claim the final women’s singles quarter-final slot.

Osaka faced early pressure but saved a break point in the opening game and produced the only break of the first set when Muchova served at 4-5. The second set unfolded as a seesaw battle: Osaka recovered from being a break down twice, survived Muchova serving for the set, and closed it out in the tiebreak.

Her reward is a semi-final meeting with world No 9 Amanda Anisimova on Thursday night.

In the post-match press conference Osaka reflected on the scheduling and her place at the event. She said it was “crazy” that organisers “put the mom on last.”

“I think for me, I appreciate the journey a lot more now. I think when I was younger, I kind of just kept thinking of the next one, the next one, the next one.

“And obviously, I would love to appreciate everything right now, but, you know, I have a match to play tomorrow. Yeah, so they put the mom on last. That’s crazy.

“So, yeah, you know, I’ll probably tell you how much I appreciate it at the end of the tournament, which is hopefully on Saturday for me. But regardless, I’m just really grateful to be playing well in this city.”

Osaka also spoke about her return to the tour after becoming a mother and the perspective it has given her. “Yeah, I mean, I learned I love tennis way more than I thought I did, and I learned that, you know, I actually really love challenges,” the 27-year-old explained.

“You know, it’s like a video game. You pick it up and even if you lose the level, you kind of just restart and keep going until you eventually win. And I think it’s a little tough at some times, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”

By reaching the last four at Flushing Meadows Osaka added 710 points to climb from 24th to 14th in the Live WTA Rankings, taking her to 2,489. A title would move her to 11th and a runner-up finish projects her to 12th.

Iga Swiatek’s bid for a second US Open title ended in the quarter-finals, where the world No 2 was beaten 6-4, 6-3 by world No 9 Amanda Anisimova. The 24-year-old Pole arrived in New York on the back of a nine-match winning streak that included her WTA 1000 title in Cincinnati last month, a run that ended with this defeat.

The result was a contrast to their meeting less than two months earlier, when Swiatek defeated Anisimova 6-0, 6-0 in the Wimbledon final to secure her sixth Grand Slam title. Swiatek spoke at length in her post-match press conference, assessing her performance and the match dynamics.

On perspective after a strong summer:

“No, because I know what I achieved, so I can’t erase it because I lost today. Yeah. So I kind of am aware. And also I couldn’t win today’s match playing like that, serving like that and with Amanda being so aggressive on the returns. So I kind of get it.”

Asked what she was least satisfied with, she said: “Well, from the baseline, I felt it was, it was good. But yeah, I think the serve made the difference. She was winning, I guess more points from her serve. And I struggled a bit to sometimes make the first serve in and she returned well from second serve. So I guess that made a difference.”

Swiatek acknowledged the different version of Anisimova she faced in New York: “She played in. It was totally different. Yeah, but as I said, it’s not a surprise. I practice with her. I know how she can play. And, yeah, it was totally different. Like, she moved better, she played better. Yeah, everything was different.”

When asked whether she needed a mental break, the interaction grew tense. The exchange included: Iga: “Do you need a mental break?”

Swiatek closed by reflecting on the opponent’s recovery from Wimbledon: “Well, I don’t know how she did that because I’m not her. Like, you need to ask her about the whole process, but I guess in tennis, like, you will get, like, heartbreaking losses and you don’t have other option. You just have to move on and try to play good next time.”

Amanda Anisimova overturned the memory of a lopsided Wimbledon final to reach the US Open semi-finals and register a significant rankings gain.

The No 9 seed had been routed 0-6, 0-6 by Iga Swiatek in the Wimbledon title match less than two months earlier. In the US Open quarter-finals she reversed that result, beating the world No 2 6-4, 6-3 to advance to the last four at Flushing Meadows for the first time.

Anisimova lost her serve in the opening game of both sets but rallied, breaking Swiatek twice in each set. The win also ended Swiatek’s nine-match winning streak; the six-time Grand Slam champion had taken the Cincinnati title last month.

In her on-court interview, Anisimova said: “Playing here is so freaking special. I’ve been having the run of my life here. When I got here I was like, ‘Ok let’s try and get through one round.’ This has been such a dream.

“To come back from Wimbledon like that is really special to me. I feel like I worked so hard to turn around from that. Today proved everything for me. I can do it. This is really special.”

At her press conference the 24-year-old, who is chasing her maiden Grand Slam title, called the victory the “most meaningful” of her career.

“It still feels a bit surreal, for sure. It’s the farthest I’ve gone by far at the US Open, and it’s extremely special,” said the 24-year-old. “Like, today is definitely the most meaningful victory I’ve had in my life.

“And, yeah, I mean, I have that belief in myself and that confidence that I’m able to play at the top level, and I’m able to really go head to head with, you know, these… the top three, and everyone who’s, you know, in the top ten.

“I’ve shown that, and I think I was able to prove that to myself time and time again for a long time now.

“But, yeah, I mean, it’s just. It’s really competitive these days, and also the Grand Slams are really tough, so I’m just really pleased to. To make it this far for the first time.”

By reaching the semi-finals Anisimova added 770 ranking points to move to 4,639 and climb four places to fifth in the Live WTA Rankings. She is guaranteed to improve on her previous career-high of seventh and will be ranked no lower than sixth after the update. She could finish fifth or sixth, with Jessica Pegula the only player who could overtake her.

Anisimova is the first American woman to reach Grand Slam semi-finals on all three surfaces since Serena and Venus Williams in 2002.