It’s a hot topic of discussion whenever the Grand Slam events come around over whether the women should play five sets, and Naomi Osaka has now had her say.
The 2025 Wimbledon is in full swing, and on day one, several seeded players went tumbling out of the men’s and women’s competitions.
Daniil Medvedev lost a third straight Grand Slam match for the first time in his career, whilst Holger Rune was also beaten despite leading by two sets to love.
In the women’s section, Paula Badosa was stunned by Katie Boulter and Sonay Kartal sent 20th seed Jelena Ostapenko packing at the first hurdle.
Osaka avoided any danger of a shock, however, and came through in comfortable fashion against Australian player Talia Gibson.
After her match, she was asked about the hot topic in world tennis whenever the Grand Slams come around, and she delivered her verdict on the concept of five sets for the women.
Photo by Mustafa Yalcin/Anadolu via Getty ImagesWhat Naomi Osaka said about women playing five sets
It always gets mentioned at the Grand Slam events regarding women only playing three sets and not five.
Whilst some women are happy playing the best of three sets, it seems as though Osaka would welcome the chance to tackle five.
After her win at Wimbledon yesterday, she delivered a pretty emphatic stance on the whole debacle.
She said: “I think I would do pretty well if that’s what you’re asking. I know we would probably never get to that point. But I wouldn’t be against it if it did happen.
“Honestly, I feel like out of all the things to be equal, that might be like one of the most nit-picky things. I’ve also just grown up my whole life knowing that men play 5 sets and women play 3 sets. I think it’s a bit hard to change that mentality, for me, personally.”
Osaka disagrees with Aryna Sabalenka
After her emphatic win yesterday, Sabalenka claimed she wouldn’t welcome five sets, claiming injuries would be more rife in the women’s game.
It’s a fair point, but it’s also intriguing that Osaka believes women could stand up to the physical demands of playing the best of five at Grand Slam events.
At this tournament, Osaka will be looking to showcase that she can get back to something like her best form at such a big tournament.
The Japanese star has won four Grand Slam events but has never gone beyond round three at Wimbledon and that is something she will hope to improve on this year.
Remarkably, Osaka hasn’t gone beyond round three of a Grand Slam since she won the Australian Open in 2021 and winning a few matches at Wimbledon would do her confidence the world of good.
AloJapan.com