'S-HERTOGENBOSCH, Netherlands -- Bianca Andreescu was victorious in the battle of former US Open champions, beating Naomi Osaka 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(3) in the quarterfinals of the Libema Open.

Playing in just her second tournament of the year, the win put Andreescu into her first Hologic WTA Tour semifinal since 2023 Hua Hin and her first on a grass court since 2022 Bad Homburg.

's-Hertogenbosch: Draws | Schedule | Scores

"These are the reason we play this sport," Andreescu said. "Winning against players like this, at least for me, it really shows me where my level is at.

"I don't want to get too ahead of myself because every day is different. I just want to take it in and use it to my advantage."

Andreescu will face Hungarian qualifier Dalma Galfi in the semifinals on Saturday. Galfi advanced with a straight-set win over Aleksandra Krunic, 7-5, 6-3. 

Tale of the tape: Andreescu was sidelined for nine months with a back injury and made her competitive return to the tour two weeks ago at Roland Garros. 

She came into Friday's highly-anticipated quarterfinal looking for her first win over Osaka. The only prior meeting between the two stars came nearly five years ago at the 2019 China Open. Osaka came from a set down to defeat Andreescu, then the reigning US Open champion, and snap the Canadian's 17-match winning streak. 

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How the match was won: Andreescu and Osaka rolled through their opening service games until a brief rain delay stopped play with Andreescu serving down 3-2. She needed just one point to hold on the resumption of play, and broke Osaka with an incredible volley winner that ricocheted off the throat of her racquet. 

Andreescu swept away Osaka's sole break-point opportunity and held to close out the set. She struck six winners to just five unforced errors in the opening frame, while holding the more aggressive Osaka to six winners. She also won 94 percent of her first serve points, winning 15 of 16.

Osaka responded immediately. She jumped on Andreescu's second serve offerings and amped up her own aggression to build a 5-0 lead before sealing the set four games later. Osaka's cross-court forehand proved particularly effective as the match wore on. After being held to just six winners in the first set, Osaka struck 11 in the second.

"That's expected from Naomi," Andreescu said. "Sometimes she'll play unbelievable games and then sometimes not so well. So the key for. me was to stay as consistent as possible. My return today, the goal was to just bunt it back and then take control of the second serve."

Into a third set for their second straight meeting, Andreescu capitalized first by breaking Osaka for a 4-2 lead. Andreescu extended that lead to 5-2, before Osaka mounted her comeback. With Andreescu looking to serve out the win at 5-3, Osaka took advantage of her second-serve opportunities and broke on a backhand error from the Canadian.

"At 5-2, I might have let up a little bit on my serve," Andreescu said. "I was saying to myself 'Go for it' but the other side of myself said 'Calm down'. So I got a bit conflicted with that.

"But really could have gone either way. It was two points difference maybe, in the whole match."

Turning point: In the deciding tiebreak, Osaka had a backhand putaway for a 4-2 lead but netted the ball. That missed opportunity weighed heavily on the four-time major champion. After the 3-3 changeover, she struck four consecutive errors to end the match.

Final stats: Andreescu played the more contained tennis on the day, striking 18 winners to just 16 unforced errors. Osaka struck 33 winners, including seven aces, to 36 unforced errors. Both players broke serve three times across the match and Osaka finished with more points, winning 98 to Andreescu's 94. 

"I never give up," Andreescu said. "I ran a lot today. More than her for sure.

"I really wanted it. I really wanted it today and I think that made the big difference." 

Up next: It will be a first meeting between Andreescu and Galfi for a spot in the final on Saturday. A victory would put Andreescu into her first final in two years. She is bidding to win her first title since her Grand Slam triumph in New York five years ago. 

The other semifinal will see No.2 seed Liudmila Samsonova take on either defending champion Ekaterina Alexandrova or American qualifier Robin Montgomery, who have yet to finish their rain-suspended quarterfinal. The weather interrupted the match early, with Montgomery leading 1-0.