US Open champ reveals surprise inspiration for Melbourne run

US Open champion Naomi Osaka confessed to being inspired by fellow young guns Stefanos Tsitsipas and Frances Tiafoe after edging a step closer to back-to-back grand slam crowns on Monday.

Osaka scrapped her way into the Australian Open quarter-finals for the first time with a 4-6 6-3 6-4 fourth-round triumph over Latvian 13th seed Anastasija Sevastova.

For the second straight match Osaka had to battle back from a set down to progress at Melbourne Park.

But the world No.4 never panicked on Rod Laver Arena.

“I was thinking I’ve been in this position before and actually last time it was a little bit worse,” Osaka said.

“I didn’t give up. She was playing really well. I wasn’t really sure what to do at a point. I just try to stick in there.

“And also I was watching all these kids winning, like, last night Tsitsipas beat Federer and I was like, ‘woah’, so I decided I wanted to do well too. I mean, I was watching him and Tiafoe.

“I thought they were playing really well and just the fact that they came out here and played against some of the top players and won and I also want top players and won and I also want to do that. I think that’s everyone’s dream.”

Osaka will face Elina Svitolina for a semi-final berth after the Ukrainian sixth seed overcame blisters and a second-set hiccup to take out the fourth-round match 6-2 1-6 6-1 on Margaret Court Arena.

A marathon 16-minute third game in the final set proved decisive with Svitolina surviving five break points before holding her serve and then running away with the win.

It keeps alive her hopes of supplanting Simona Halep as the world No.1.

Svitolina has never progressed further than the quarter-finals of a grand slam and the result mirrors last year’s final eight showing at Melbourne Park, when she lost to Belgian Elise Mertens.

After winning the WTA Finals in Singapore late last year, the 24-year-old looks poised to take the next step.

A former world No.3, Svitolina hadn’t beaten Keys in their previous two clashes, including their 2017 US Open quarter-final meeting.

Storming through the second set it appeared Keys had all the momentum but that shifted when Svitolina somehow held firm when serving at 1-1.

The game was almost as long as the entire second set with Keys crumbling after she failed to take advantage of the numerous break-point chances.

with AAP