Impressive Osaka, Barty make winning start

MELBOURNE: Ashleigh Barty and Naomi Osaka made successful returns after long layoffs on Tuesday, fine-tuning their preparations ahead of the Australian Open. In the night match, world number one Barty showed little rust to comfortably beat Ana Bogdan 6-3, 6-3 in the Yarra Valley Classic. “I’ve missed coming out here competing but I felt great tonight,” she said. The Australian played her first tournament in 11 months after opting to remain home in relatively Covid-19 free Queensland during the pandemic and even decided against defending her French Open crown. Barty, hoping to break her country’s 43-year singles title drought at the Australian Open, was made to work early before pouncing on Bogdan’s tentative serve and she proved far too consistent for the Romanian. The 24-year-old plays world number 52 Marie Bouzkova next. Osaka made similarly light work of France’s Alize Cornet in the Japanese star’s first competitive match since winning the US Open for a second time. The three-time Grand Slam champion hit 22 winners to move into the third round of the Gippsland Trophy with a 6-2, 6-2 victory in Melbourne. “I haven’t played a match since the final in New York, I was definitely really nervous going into it,” said Osaka, who won the Australian Open in 2019. “But I’m really happy with how positive I was throughout the match.” — AFP