US Open 2018: Serena Williams vs Naomi Osaka final preview, telecast, date, start time and where to watch online

(17) Serena Williams (WR #26) vs (20) Naomi Osaka (WR #19)

Head-to-head: Osaka leads 1-0

Having idolized Serena Williams while growing up, 20-year-old Naomi Osaka has an interesting situation at hand in her first ever Major final at the US Open 2018. Osaka’s father was inspired by watching Serena and Venus play at the 1999 French Open, which spurred him on to teach tennis to his two daughters.

The Osaka sisters have been compared to the two Williams sisters on many occasions as they started their journey in the sport. Now, in her first ever final in a Major, the young Japanese faces none other than Serena, a player for whom she has expressed her admiration countless times.

Even when she was asked about how she managed to find the fire inside her to save as many as 13 break points in her semi-final against the more experienced Madison Keys, Osaka nonchalantly told that she really wanted to meet Serena in the final.

On Saturday, however, Osaka, has to push aside that admiration when she appears in the biggest final of her fledgling career as Williams simply means and knows business in a Grand Slam final.

The 36-year-old has been serving brilliantly throughout the tournament, having produced 64 aces so far, showing flashes of a vintage Serena. More importantly, her movement is considerably better now, that was evidenced by how speedily she approached the net against Anastasija Sevastova in her semi-final, earning 86% success in that aspect of the game.

That is one area she was sluggish in during the Wimbledon final, where she was the heavy favourite against Angelique Kerber.

That unexpected collapse of her game on the pristine lawns of SW19 took away her chance of tying with the record 24 Grand Slam-haul of Margaret Court. That miss should make her doubly motivated this time. What better chance to do it than in front of her own home crowd, who haven’t seen her lift the trophy since 2014?

However, there is a caveat. Osaka is not just like any other starry-eyed youngster on the big platform. She already has a win over the great American in their only meeting at the 2018 Miami Open so far. Granted that Serena was then coming back from her break due to maternity leave, Osaka can still draw confidence from that performance.

Even if one can dilute the importance of that win as Serena wasn’t at her best, it cannot be ignored that Osaka has the weapons to dismantle the big names, and, with it, she has a lot of belief as well. The world marvelled at her gigantic serves and huge forehands when she had her giant-killing run to the Indian Wells title in March, but it has been her calm approach under pressure at the Flushing Meadows that has impressed one and all.

The way she stormed back from a break down against Aryna Sabalenka in the fourth round and never conceded a break to Keys in the semi-finals was applause-worthy. Those two instances show how far she has come in terms of willpower, desire and mental strength.

They will, of course, be put to a stern test against the mighty Williams on the Arthur Ashe Stadium on Saturday. She won’t have it easy against someone of Serena’s stature, especially after having worshipped her all her life, but she also won’t give up this priceless opportunity of leaving her mark on the court.

Prediction: Serena in 3