Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka have done something neither has ever done before: reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals.
On a dramatic Day 7 at the All England Club, both women broke through barriers that had previously held them back on grass. Gauff survived a late-night battle against Belinda Bencic, finishing with just two minutes to spare before Wimbledon’s strict 11 p.m. curfew. Osaka, meanwhile, delivered the statement win of the tournament, overpowering world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka in straight sets on Centre Court.
The 14th-seeded Osaka produced one of the finest performances of her career to defeat Sabalenka, 6-2, 7-6(2). The four-time major champion, who has won all her titles on hard courts, had lost to Sabalenka in all three previous meetings this year.
“I just tried to get the upper hand in the rallies first,” Osaka said after the match. Her strategy worked. The 82-degree warmth helped her flat groundstrokes fly through the air faster than ever, and Sabalenka had no answer. “She overpowered me,” Sabalenka admitted. “I felt like it was incredible level from her”.
The victory snapped Sabalenka’s streak of 21 consecutive tiebreak wins at majors. More importantly, it sent Osaka to her first Wimbledon quarterfinal in what’s been a resurgent season under new coach Tomasz Wiktorowski.
The 22-year-old American’s path was no less dramatic. Gauff and Bencic didn’t step onto No. 1 Court until after 8:30 p.m., following a lengthy men’s match. What followed was a two-hour, 18-minute thriller that went the distance.
After dropping the first set 4-6, Gauff rallied to take the second 6-3 and the third 6-4. But the real tension came from the clock. With the 11 p.m. curfew looming, a rule introduced to protect local residents from late-night noise, Gauff served out victory with just two minutes to spare.
She tapped her wrist like a watch after the final point, later joking she was “glad I didn’t choose basketball”. “Yayyy. super happy to be in the quarters finally,” she said.
Gauff will face fellow American and occasional doubles partner Jessica Pegula in the quarterfinals on Tuesday . It’s an all-American showdown with a semifinal berth on the line. Osaka will take on 10th-seeded Karolina Muchova, who beat her in the Bad Homburg final just before Wimbledon.
The women’s draw is now wide open. With top seeds Sabalenka, Rybakina, and defending champion Swiatek all out, a ninth consecutive first-time Wimbledon women’s champion will be crowned . Both Gauff and Osaka are in the conversation to make history.
