The veteran American's quest to reach a ninth Australian
Open final and match Court's 24 major singles titles ended in a 6-3, 6-4
semi-final mauling by the Japanese third seed.
Williams, 39, broke early for a 2-0 lead before Osaka reeled
off five straight games to leave her shellshocked.
“The difference today was errors. I made so many errors,”
said the 23-time Grand Slam champion.
“Honestly, it was opportunities where I could have won. I
could have been up 5-0. It was a big error day for me.”
In a clash of power games, it was Osaka who had the edge,
hitting 20 winners to Williams’s 12, while also committing three fewer unforced
errors on 21.
Williams said she had been hitting well all tournament and
had no explanation for the loss other than “too many mistakes there, easy
mistakes”.
Osaka’s victory left her still stranded on 23 Grand Slam
crowns, one short of Court’s tally, with her last major title coming in
Melbourne four years ago when she was pregnant.
Asked about it afterwards, she suggested the gesture was
more about acknowledging the crowd, who were allowed back into Rod Laver Arena
after a five-day snap lockdown and gave the American a rousing send-off.
“I don’t know. If I ever say farewell, I wouldn’t tell
anyone,” she said
But Williams later posted a heartfelt message to her
Australian fans on Instagram.
“Today was not ideal outcome or performance but it happens …
I am so honoured to be able to play in front of you all,” she said.
“Your support — your cheers, I only wish I could have done
better for you today. I am forever in debt and grateful to each and everyone
single one of you. I love you. I love you. I love you. I adore you.”
Osaka, who is 16 years younger than Williams and grew up
watching her, said she was honoured to be on the same court.
“I mean, it definitely means a lot. I think, of course, every
time I play her, I feel like it’s something I’ll definitely remember a lot,”
she said, adding that talk of the American retiring made her “sad”.
“I want her to play forever,” she said. “That’s the little kid in me.”
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