Osaka Beats Mertens to Reach US Open R16

Naomi Osaka dug out of a 4-2 hole in the third set to beat Elise Mertens 6-3, 3-6, 7-5 on Saturday and reach the US Open Round of 16, per the Associated Press.

The No. 13 seed and two-time Flushing Meadows champion put her head on her racket after the final point, stunned that she had closed it.

Down 4-2, then the flip

"Honestly, I can't believe I won this match," Osaka said, per AP. "I'm literally shocked that I won this match." She took the opener, dropped the second, then trailed 4-2 in the decider before finding another gear. It was not Zheng Qinwen's seven-game avalanche earlier in the day, but it was the same Flushing theme: refuse to leave.

Osaka apologized for how much frustration she showed through a tough night. "There was a certain point, I don't know, I felt like I put my entire heart on the court and then I just kept trying every single point," she said. "I didn't feel like I played amazing, and it was really getting me down. I was very negative on myself."

She kept competing anyway. That is how a two-time champion avoids the kind of exit Taylor Fritz took on Ashe, blowing a two-set lead and falling to Francisco Cerundolo in five.

Week 2 path, Zheng company

Osaka joins Zheng in the women's Round of 16 on a chaotic Saturday that also knocked out Madison Keys and Amanda Anisimova. Zheng saved a match point and won the last seven games against Keys. Coco Gauff moved on as well with a 6-3, 6-4 win over Cristina Bucsa.

For Osaka, the third-set rescue matters as much as the bracket. She has looked search-y at stretches this summer. Saturday she looked stubborn. Head on the strings, disbelief in the quote, Round of 16 stamped.

Flushing already has enough chaos for a full highlight reel. Osaka made sure her name stayed on it. For more US Open board already on Smacktok, see Zheng's match-point save and Cerundolo's five-set stunner over Fritz. Saturday night belonged to Osaka's third-set climb.