Sixth seeded German, Angelique Kerber became the first women’s defending champion to lose in the US Open first round as she was defeated 6 – 3, 6 – 1 by 19-year old Japanese Naomi Osaka. Kerber has not won a title since winning at Flushing Meadows last year. World number 45 Osaka broke in the first game of the second set and continued to dominate the court with winners to hold for 2-0.
The last defending women’s champion to lose in the first round in New York was Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova in 2005. She next faces either Swedish qualifier Rebecca Peterson or Czech Denisa Allertova with a potential fourth-round clash against French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko on the horizon.
