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Up against 27th seed Anisimova, four-time Grand Slam champion Osaka
never looked comfortable on her least favourite surface as she
struggled to control her powerful game.
The first three games all went against serve in a tense start but
Anisimova held to go 3-1 ahead.
A backhand error by Anisimova allowed Osaka to level for 3-3, but a
double fault in the 11th game allowed Anisimova to move 6-5 up and
she held serve to love to take the set.
Anisimova broke decisively for 4-3 in the second set as Osaka again
double faulted game.
After a couple of match points went begging, Anisimova finished it
off with a stunning backhand winner down the line.
Osaka withdrew from the tournament in 2021 after boycotting
post-match media duties for mental health reasons.
In the build-up to last year's French Open, Osaka said she would not
attend the obligatory news conferences for players after matches as
they impacted her mental wellbeing.
The Japanese, who at that time revealed she had been suffering from
depression for almost three years, returned to competitive tennis at
the Tokyo Olympics after the saga cast a spotlight on players'
post-match media duties.
Roland Garros organisers conceded they could "do better" on mental
health this year.
(Reporting by Julien Pretot; Editing by Martyn Herman)
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