When asked a few questions later what caused the errors or if it was just a bad day, Williams broke down. 'I made so many errors today, so, honestly, it was opportunities where I could have won. 'The difference today was errors,' she said. Both players struggled with their first serves, and Osaka had eight double faults (Williams had one), but the 23-year-old also had six aces, with a number of them coming at key times.Īt her post-match press conference, Williams, who was playing in her 40th Grand Slam semifinal, cited her errors - 18 forced, 24 unforced - as the turning point. While the majority of the stats showed an even match-up, Osaka dominated in winners with 20 to Williams' 12.

Well, Osaka definitely brought her A-game. 'Honestly for me, I don't know, it's just always an honor to play her and I just didn't want to go out, like, really bad, so I just wanted to try my best.' 'I hit a lot of unforced errors in the first few games and I was just really like nervous and scared I think in the beginning, and I eased my way into it,' Osaka told ESPN's - and two-time Aussie Open winner himself - Jim Courier on the court after the match. Things started out well for Williams, who jumped out to a 2-0 lead and looked poised to make another Australian Open final.

3 seed Naomi Osaka in the Australian Open semifinals. Serena Williams' quest for 24 Grand Slams, and tying Margaret Court's record, will continue after the American was handed a 6-3, 6-4 loss by the No.

Australian open live scores 2021