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Naomi Osaka loses for the first time since February 2020

Australian and US Open champion was beaten in straight sets by Maria Sakkari

Naomi Osaka was beaten in straight sets by Maria Sakkari in Miami. Photo: Lynne Sladky/AP

Thu Apr 1 2021 - 07:24

Naomi Osaka’s 23-match winning streak came to a sudden end at the Miami Open following a straight-sets loss in the quarter-finals.

Osaka has not tasted defeat since losing to Sara Sorribes Tormo in last February’s Billie Jean King Cup qualifiers — a run which has seen her triumph at both the Australian and US Opens.

But the number two seed came unstuck against Maria Sakkari on Wednesday.

Sakkari needed only 69 minutes to secure a 6-0 6-4 victory and book her spot in just her third career semi-final.

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After failing to win a game in the opening set, former world number one Osaka took a 3-0 lead in the second.

But Sakkari, the number 23 seed, rediscovered her form from the first set to take six of the next seven games en route to an emphatic victory.