OSAKA — Katie Boulter powered into the quarter-finals of the Japan Open with an emphatic 6-2 6-1 victory over Switzerland's Viktorija Golubic in under an hour in Osaka. The British number two needed less than 60 minutes to dispatch her opponent and secure her place in the last eight.
The eighth seed was tested early, saving a break point in the opening game, before taking complete control from 2-2 in the first set. Boulter then reeled off nine games in a row to seize the opener and race through the second, before Golubic finally halted the run by taking the penultimate game of the match.
"I think one of the biggest things for me is staying patient in the wind," she said. "Sometimes I can get a little frustrated, and I'm very pleased that I didn't allow that to affect me today and I think I ended up playing some really good tennis in the second set. I'm really pleased with the performance." Boulter said she was pleased with how she handled "difficult conditions", with strong wind affecting play throughout.
The 30-year-old arrived in Osaka as British number two after Sonny Kartal replaced her at the top of the rankings on Monday, but her run this week has put her in position to retake the British number one spot. She will now face either Croatia's Antonia Ruzic or American Kayla Day for a place in the semi-finals, building on her opening victory over Sakatsume earlier in the tournament.