MELBOURNE: The trouble for Naomi Osaka at Grand Slam tournaments comes in Week 1. Get beyond that stage at the hard-court majors, though, and start preparing to etch her name on the trophy.

Osaka gave Jennifer Brady a lesson in Grand Slam tennis as she cruised to a 6-4, 6-3 win to secure her second Australian Open title on Saturday and cement her standing as the new queen of the women’s game.

Osaka’s victory over the 22nd-seeded American at a floodlit Rod Laver Arena gave the Japanese third seed her fourth major crown at the age of 23, preserving her 100 percent record in Grand Slam finals after winning the 2018 and 2020 US Opens and the 2019 title in Melbourne.

With strong serving that produced six aces, Osaka is the first woman to start her career that way since Monica Seles did it 30 years ago and has now won two of the last three Grand Slams as her status and reputation soars.

“We played in the semis of the US Open a couple of months ago and I told everyone that you’re going to be a problem,” Osaka told Brady at the trophy presentation. “And I was right. It’s really incredible to me to see your growth over the past few months, it’s really cool for me to see.”

Fans hoping for a repeat of the pair’s engrossing US Open semi-final last year were left disappointed as Brady froze in the spotlight of her first Grand Slam final.

Osaka played some way short of her best tennis and joined Brady in contributing to a dour, error-strewn first set.

But she settled to clinch six straight games, roaring to a 4-0 lead in the second before serving out the match to love.

A big serve sealed it, causing Brady to fire a forehand return long, and Osaka held her racket over her head and beamed in an understated celebration.

“She played really well when she had to,” Brady said. “She hit good shots when she needed them.”

Osaka is on a 21-match winning streak that dates to last season and thanked the fans at the trophy ceremony.

“It feels really incredible for me,” said Osaka, who will be world number two when the rankings are updated. “I didn’t play my last Grand Slam with fans so just to have this energy it really means a lot.”

Only two active women own more Slam titles than Osaka: Serena Williams, with 23, and her sister, Venus, with seven.

Next task for Osaka is improving on clay and grass. She’s never been past the third round at the French Open or Wimbledon.

“She’s such an inspiration to us all, and what shes doing for the game is amazing in getting the sport out there, said Brady, who had to go through a hard quarantine for 15 days when she arrived in Australia in January because someone on her flight tested positive for Covid-19 when they arrived. “I hope young girls at home are watching and inspired by what she’s doing.”

On a cool and breezy night, Osaka warmed up with two aces as she served out the opening game to love but the blazing start fizzled out in a stream of errors from both players.

Grappling with early nerves, Brady dropped serve after two double-faults but quickly broke back when Osaka double-faulted to gift a break point.

Brady breathed some life into the contest at 4-4, luring Osaka in with a drop-shot, then scrambling forward to retrieve and lob her for break point.

Osaka cancelled it nervelessly with an imperious forehand winner launched from the baseline and then broke to grab the set, helped by Brady’s double-fault and a netted forehand on a short ball to end it.

Osaka gained a stranglehold with an early break in the second set and fired down an ace to skip out to a 3-0 lead, followed by a roar of “C’mon!”.

Brady attempted a late rally, but a calm Osaka was not to be denied.

Published in Dawn, February 21st, 2021