The 2020 Tokyo Olympics has kick-started in grand style and fans are loving every bit of the action. As the draws for the tennis event took place yesterday, ecstatic fans picked their favorites and predicted a blockbuster final. Some of the biggest names in the sport will grace the prestigious tournament, in a quest for gold. However, only one amongst these greats will win the ultimate Olympic glory. Regardless, fans will be thrilled to see their favorites back in action; notably, the return of Naomi Osaka.

The Japanese star will make her first appearance on the court since her sabbatical earlier this year. Even though she is considered a favorite for gold, in her way stands the mighty Australian, Ashleigh Barty. Speaking of the rivalry between the two, former gold medalist, Todd Woodbridge believes fans would love nothing more than to see the two giants go head to head in the all-important final at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

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Naomi Osaka vs Ashleigh Barty – A blockbuster clash for gold

The Australian legend, who won the gold in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, was all praise for Naomi Osaka and Ashleigh Barty. He believes the two young guns are by far the best in the circuit, sharing six major Grand Slam titles between them. Hence, a meet-up of the two will send flames across the tennis world. “Barty and Osaka are clearly the best two players over the past two-and-a-half years; between them they’ve now won six majors. And that would be the match-up that we all would probably expect, and like, to see,” Todd said.

Naomi Osaka returns to the court after a nearly two-month-long break. Hence, it would be interesting to see how well she finds her footing and resumes to be her very best version. “But she hasn’t played a lot of tennis now for a couple of months, and she’s got to find confidence in her game. She is a confidence player, so it will be interesting to see how she finds that in the opening couple of matches,” said Todd.

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Her Australian counterpart, on the other hand, is currently in the form of her life. The 2021 Wimbledon Championship winner comes on the back of emphatic victories, riding high on confidence. Hence, fans await to see how Ashleigh Barty could replicate her Wimbledon success at the grand stage.

Let the Games begin

The tennis event is scheduled to begin on the 23rd of July, as games will be played at 11.00 am local time for the first six days and at 12.00 am for the last 3 days of the event. With a 64-player draw, each round is a single-elimination round for the women’s singles category.

As both the highest-ranked players begin their journey to gold, it will be interesting to see which debutant can create history. However, nothing would be more enthralling than a clash of the titans for the ultimate prize.

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