Former World No.1 Naomi Osaka will play her first match on grass in five years against No.4 seed Elise Mertens in the first round of the Libéma Open, which begins on Monday in 's-Hertogenbosch.
Osaka, who held match point against Iga Swiatek in the second round of Roland Garros last week before falling in a three-set thriller, has received a wild card for the WTA 250 event.
The four-time major champion last competed on grass at Wimbledon 2019, where she fell in the first round to Yulia Putintseva. She has reached one tour-level grass-court semifinal, at Birmingham 2018 -- though back in 2015, Osaka reached the final of the Surbiton ITF $50K in her first ever tournament on grass. That run saw her defeat Hsieh Su-Wei and Anett Kontaveit before falling to Vitalia Diatchenko.
Osaka leads her head-to-head against Mertens 3-2. All of their previous matches have come on outdoor hard courts; they have played once since Osaka returned from maternity leave this year, a 7-5, 6-4 win for Mertens in the third round of Indian Wells in March.
Head to Head
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The 's-Hertogenbosch draw is headed by No.1 seed Jessica Pegula, who will face a qualifier in the first round. The American is returning to action for the first time since the Billie Jean King Cup Qualifiers in April, having been sidelined during the clay-court swing due to injury. Pegula could potentially face 2018 champion Aleksandra Krunic in the second round.
Two-time defending champion Ekaterina Alexandrova is the No.3 seed, and will begin her quest for a hat-trick of titles against Arina Rodionova. No.2 seed Liudmila Samsonova faces a tough opener against former No.37 Alison Van Uytvanck, who is on the comeback trail from a back injury.
Former US Open champion Bianca Andreescu has also received a wild card, and opens against a qualifier. The Canadian returned from an eight-month layoff due to a back injury at Roland Garros, reaching the third round. Andreescu could potentially face either No.4 seed Yuan Yue or Diana Shnaider in the second round, and Osaka or Mertens in the quarterfinals.
Click here to view the full 2024 's-Hertogenbosch draw.
