Glamour and grit: Osaka survives stern Ruzic challenge at Australian Open

Naomi Osaka's arrival to the Rod Laver Arena on Tuesday night was all glamoUr, but her performance needed to be all grit. The No. 16 seed needed 2 hours and 22 minutes to quell the challenge of Croatia's Antonia Ruzic 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 after coming from a break down in the third set.

Australian Open: Scores | Draws | Order of play

The four-time major champion had made a statement entrance in an outfit incorporating a parasol, a veil, a train and a butterfly-bedecked fascinator. It was modeled after a jellyfish, she revealed in her on-court interview, and the butterflies referenced her 2021 title run in Melbourne.

But Ruzic -- who was celebrating her 23rd birthday -- was in no mood to be overshadowed on court. Though she was making her Australian Open debut, and competing in just her second Grand Slam main draw, the Zagreb native was high on confidence -- last week, she made her first WTA semifinal in Hobart, pushing her up to a career high ranking of No. 65.

Ruzic went toe-to-toe with Osaka throughout, matching the Japanese player's shotmaking from the baseline as she overturned a 2-0 deficit to lead 4-3 with a break in the decider. With her back to the wall, Osaka needed to find another gear -- and at the last minute, she did, rattling off 12 of the last 15 points to escape with victory.

"I thought my level was pretty good," Osaka said after the match. "If she's playing at a level that's higher than mine the entire time, then she deserves to win. Obviously I don't want that to happen. But if it does, then it's out of my hands because I'm literally doing the best that I can.

"I tried to change it up a little. I know she had a really good backhand. I tried to hit more to her forehand. I tried to be a little bit more solid, then kind of accelerate when I could."

Ruzic's baseline brilliance: As befitting someone with the confidence to pull off that outfit, Osaka made a lightning-fast start, dropping just three points in the first three games. But once Ruzic settled, she showed that she could live with Osaka's pace off the ground, particularly if she was able to survive the former World No. 1's first strike -- and she had more than enough firepower of her own, particularly with her forehand down the line, to end points on her terms.

Osaka had the edge in shorter exchanges, winning 62 of the points that lasted four shots or fewer compared to Ruzic's 47. But once the rally went to five shots, it was Ruzic who had the slight advantage, winning 45 of those points to Osaka's 40. And the fact that she was able to extend points to that length on 85 occasions -- invariably high-octane, crowd-pleasing tussles -- was itself evidence of her impact on the match.

Osaka's last-minute escalation: Ruzic also showed impressive fortitude at the start of the third set, fending off three points to go down 3-0 and another one to go down 3-1. Emerging from a sequence of tight games, she broke for 4-3 as Osaka sent a backhand wide.

But Ruzic wobbled, and Osaka stepped up to break back. With the match poised at 4-4, Osaka fired four straight unreturned serves, including two clean aces, each punctuated by a cry of "c'mon!". Ruzic's forehand, which had been so lethal for much of the match, let her down badly in the final game with three unforced errors from that wing. Osaka was quick to sense her chance, and slammed a brilliant backhand winner to convert her first match point.

"Honestly it was kind of fun to trade backhands," Osaka said. "The last person that I played that had a really good backhand beat me. I hope that I learned from this match, too."

Osaka will next face Sorana Cirstea, who came from a set down to defeat Eva Lys 3-6, 6-4, 6-3.