Amanda Anisimova and Naomi Osaka meet in the first round of the 2022 tennis French Open.
Amanda Anisimova enters this tournament with wins in 10 of her last 13 matches, making her arguably the hottest player in the field. Anisimova has wins over three top-10 players this year, and she’s won at least three matches in each of her last three tournaments. At just 20 years old, it’s safe to say this is easily some of the best tennis we’ve seen from the American. Anisimova has lost in the first round in two of her last four grand slam trips, but she’s 7-4 in the French Open, which includes a semifinal appearance in 2019. The French Open has been the most successful grand slam tournament for the 20-year-old. Anisimova has won six of her last eight matches on clay court.
Naomi Osaka has played just two matches since making the final in Miami, and one of those was a straight sets loss to Sara Sorribes Tormo. In the losing effort, Osaka got just 45 percent of her first serves in play and was broken five times. Osaka has had a shaky year outside of her Miami success, and the lack of reps on clay could hurt her chances at a deep run. However, we’ve seen Osaka flip a switch in the past and if she finds some early confidence, she puts herself in the thick of things yet again. Osaka has not lost in the first round of a grand slam since the 2019 Wimbledon. Osaka is 4-1 in career French Open first round matches. Osaka has split her last eight matches on clay court.
Anisimova has won both matches against Osaka. One of those was an exhibition tiebreak a couple of months ago. The other was an official match in this year’s Australian Open, a match the American won in three sets. The match took 32 games to be decided.
Osaka and the plus money is always intriguing, knowing what she’s capable of when she’s right. However, Osaka hasn’t been right for much of the year, and she’s played just two matches in the last two months. Anisimova not only beat Osaka earlier this year, but she’s playing some of the best tennis of her life right now. The consistent reps is also going to give Anisimova a considerable edge in terms of rust, as you can’t expect Osaka to be completely clean with her ball striking.
Give me Anisimova to win this match.