Naomi Osaka underlined her status as a genuine star when she backed up her US Open title by giving herself a shot at winning a second Grand Slam in succession
On a day of soaring temperatures, the roof was shut on the Rod Laver Arena as the Flushing Meadows champion edged her way past Serena Williams's conqueror Karolina Pliskova, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 in an hour and 53 minutes
In the last 12 years multiple female players have suffered a letdown after claiming their first Major but not the cosmopolitan Osaka, who is the authentic article
+11 <img id="i-3d21c24bef965be7" src="https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/01/24/07/8922552-6626491-image-a-12_1548313492338
jpg" height="423" width="634" alt="Naomi Osaka beat Karolina Pliskova 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 to reach Saturday's Australian Open final" class="blkBorder img-share"/> Copy link to paste in your message Naomi Osaka beat Karolina Pliskova 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 to reach Saturday's Australian Open final +11 <img id="i-760cd6243a2175aa" src="https://i
dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/01/24/07/8922554-6626491-image-a-27_1548314011406.jpg" height="423" width="634" alt="Pliskova performed excellently but was ultimately outplayed in what was a Grand Slam classic" class="blkBorder img-share"/> Copy link to paste in your message Pliskova performed excellently but was ultimately outplayed in what was a Grand Slam classic +11 <img id="i-7be9e2ffef821358" src="https://i
dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/01/24/07/8922674-6626491-image-a-28_1548314015220.jpg" height="423" width="634" alt="Osaka wore a huge smile and raised both of her arms in the air as she celebrated her victory" class="blkBorder img-share"/> Copy link to paste in your message Osaka wore a huge smile and raised both of her arms in the air as she celebrated her victory +11 <img id="i-8a32b26f7b5f66d7" src="https://i
dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/01/24/06/8921322-0-image-a-1_1548310023492.jpg" height="423" width="634" alt="Fourth seed Osaka returned serve well and broke her opponent four times on Rod Laver Arena" class="blkBorder img-share"/> Copy link to paste in your message Fourth seed Osaka returned serve well and broke her opponent four times on Rod Laver Arena She now faces Petra Kvitova, who overcame American outsider Danielle Collins 7-6 6-0
Kvitova is in her first Grand Slam final since Wimbledon 2014, and for the first time since she suffered a knife attack in her home just over two years ago
Whoever wins on Saturday will become the new world No 1. If it is Kvitova she would become the ninth straight different women's singles winner at one of the big four tournaments
'I kind of expected her to come back, I was expecting a really hard battle and I told myself to regroup in the third set,' said Osaka after the match, before admitting: 'I was so scared serving second serves I was like "Oh my God please!"'She was disappointed that the roof was closed, despite temperatures being into the forties
'I like the heat so I was kind of sad about that,' she said. 'They had the roof open and I thought it's my time to shine
'This was the first day the southern hemisphere heat really bared its teeth with temperatures going over the 100 mark
The heat index in use requires it to reach an extreme 'five' to cause the closure of the roof, and it soared beyond that, hitting 5
9.Junior matches were suspended outdoors and the roof was closed during the first set of the Collins-Kvitova match at 4-4 – to the American's chagrin – and for the duration of Osaka's encounter against Pliskova
+11 <img id="i-8645770d07be7ab9" src="https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/01/24/06/8921648-6626491-image-a-10_1548310551866
jpg" height="423" width="634" alt="Osaka served excellently and delivered 15 aces — 12 more than her opponent produced" class="blkBorder img-share"/> Copy link to paste in your message Osaka served excellently and delivered 15 aces — 12 more than her opponent produced +11 <img id="i-fe4944d992e3d0e5" src="https://i
dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/01/24/06/8921330-0-image-m-3_1548310121342.jpg" height="580" width="634" alt="Twenty-one-year-old Osaka celebrated winning a point with a clenched left fist in Melbourne" class="blkBorder img-share"/> Copy link to paste in your message Twenty-one-year-old Osaka celebrated winning a point with a clenched left fist in Melbourne +11 <img id="i-80de31d9cd9f6fb0" src="https://i
dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/01/24/06/8921360-0-image-a-4_1548310191896.jpg" height="456" width="634" alt="Pliskova, who had beaten seven-time champ Serena Williams 24 hours earlier, looked focussed" class="blkBorder img-share"/> Copy link to paste in your message Pliskova, who had beaten seven-time champ Serena Williams 24 hours earlier, looked focussed +11 <img id="i-3d04872b750e0a17" src="https://i
dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/01/24/06/8921354-6626491-image-a-5_1548310358974.jpg" height="423" width="634" alt="Osaka raised her finger to challenge a line judge's call using the Hawk-Eye review system" class="blkBorder img-share"/> Copy link to paste in your message Osaka raised her finger to challenge a line judge's call using the Hawk-Eye review systemIn a match featuring two powerful servers, Osaka did not face a break point in the first set but created six against her long-levered opponent, two of which were taken
Osaka's returns were excellent, as it was not the case that the Czech's serve was off at the start, three of out of four first serves landing in during the opener
She did, however, toss in three double faults in the first set, and could not register any aces
Watched by Australian showbiz royalty Nicole Kidman and British fashion icon Anna Wintour, Osaka's forehand was doing plenty of damage and she broke to extend her lead at the start of the second set
The winners kept coming from her racket, but there was an increase in errors that allowed Pliskova straight back in and she levelled the match when Osaka played a particularly erratic game at 4-5 when serving
It looked like Pliskova had the momentum at the start of the third and she missed three break points to take a 2-0 lead in the decider
As so often happens, the disappointment of not taking them weighed heavily, and she was immediately broken to love herself
The Czech threatened to come back as she had done against Serena Williams, and forced a break point at 3-4 but the Japanese player determinedly held her off, and hid any nerves as she closed it out
+11 <img id="i-260254464e426b09" src="https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/01/24/06/8921334-6626491-image-a-8_1548310459588
jpg" height="611" width="634" alt="Pliskova used a colorful towel to dry her face during a change of ends at a hot Melbourne Park" class="blkBorder img-share"/> Copy link to paste in your message Pliskova used a colorful towel to dry her face during a change of ends at a hot Melbourne Park +11 <img id="i-a052109d33c8ae51" src="https://i
dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/01/24/06/8921314-6626491-image-a-9_1548310501770.jpg" height="423" width="634" alt="Osaka refuelled by taking a sip of water during a break between games in Thursday's semi-final" class="blkBorder img-share"/> Copy link to paste in your message Osaka refuelled by taking a sip of water during a break between games in Thursday's semi-final +11 <img id="i-4f2ff8d676032e2f" src="https://i
dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/01/24/06/8921310-6626491-image-a-11_1548310683467.jpg" height="424" width="634" alt="No 7 seed Pliskova played very well in what was one of the matches of the tournament so far" class="blkBorder img-share"/> Copy link to paste in your message No 7 seed Pliskova played very well in what was one of the matches of the tournament so far
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