Japan's Naomi Osaka won her second straight Grand Slam title as she beat Czech Petra Kvitova 7-6(2) 5-7 6-4 in the final of Australian Open 2019 on Saturday.
This is Osaka's second Grand Slam women's singles title after winning the US Open last year. She is also set to became the world number one after taking the 'win one take two' final match.
Winning back-to-back Grand Slams is a huge statement for Osaka, showing her success at Flushing Meadows was not a one-off.
She is the first player other than American 23-time major winner Serena Williams to claim back-to-back majors since Kim Clijsters took the 2010 US Open and 2011 Australian Open.
Osaka also became the youngest to achieve the feat since Martina Hingis won the 1998 Australian Open after claiming the US Open in 1997.
See-saw battle
The final on Saturday featured two of the game's biggest hitters in a showdown for both the Australian crown and the world number one ranking. However, it was Osaka who came out on top eventually.
Osaka halted two-time Wimbledon champion Kvitova's 11-match winning streak. When Osaka won the first set in via tie-breaker, this was the first time Kvitova had dropped a set or even been stretched to a tie-break in the tournament so far.
The two women saved 8 break points between them in the first set to take it to the tie-breaker. However, Osaka seemed to find some energy in her reserves to overcame Kvitova and take the first set.
Osaka then broke Kvitova early in the second set. When it looked like Osaka was set to wrap the match, Kvitova saved three championship points to hold for 4-5 in the second set. She then broke Osaka twice and then held on to her serve to take the set 7-5.
Osaka, however, broke early in the third set and kept the advantage to take the set 6-4.
World No. 1
The final of this year's season-opening Grand Slam also determined the world number one ranking after Simona Halep was bundled out in the fourth round.
Neither Osaka nor Kvitova had held the top spot before. Osaka was sitting on a career-high ranking of four, while Kvitova even in her pomp only reached number two in 2011, the year she claimed her maiden major at Wimbledon.
Osaka has been enthusiastic about the prospect of becoming world number one but also said before the match that the title was her priority.
"Of course that's a very big deal for me," she said. "It's one of the biggest goals that I had when I heard it was possible after playing the quarters.
"But my main goal is winning this tournament. The ranking comes after that. I tend to do better if I focus on one goal."
