Camila Osorio became the first Colombian woman to defeat a former World No. 1 with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over 2018 champion Naomi Osaka at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells on Wednesday night.

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In a first-round showdown between players separated by only three spots in the PIF WTA Rankings, it was No. 53 Osorio who took 1 hour and 31 minutes to oust 56th-ranked Osaka of Japan, a four-time Grand Slam champion.

An Osaka win would have set up a rematch of this year's Auckland final in the second round, but instead it will be Osorio who takes on No. 22 seed Clara Tauson of Denmark, this year's titlist in New Zealand. Osorio defeated Tauson in their only previous meeting via retirement, on the green clay of Charleston in 2021.

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Back on court: Both Osorio and Osaka were making returns to the tour after over a month away. This was just Osaka's third event of the season; she withdrew from both the Auckland final and the third round of the Australian Open due to an abdominal issue.

Osorio was also playing her first event since January, when she fell to eventual champion Elise Mertens in the first round of Singapore. The Colombian withdrew from last week's Merida main draw, also due to an abdominal injury.

In the end, it was Osorio who came back to action victorious, earning her first-ever main-draw win at the BNP Paribas Open after first-round losses in 2021 and 2022. She also avenged a straight-sets loss to Osaka in their lone previous meeting, at the 2022 Australian Open.

Tale of the match: Osaka, who won her first career title here in the desert in 2018, was under pressure early, having to fend off two break points in her second service game. However, the Japanese star held on all the way up to 4-4.

But by that same juncture, Osorio had won her last two service games at love, as she used incredible defending to set up finishing plays. That speed paid dividends when she drew errors from Osaka to break for a 5-4 lead.

Osorio reached set point when a netcord ball clipped the outside of the sideline, and she converted that chance after Osaka missed a return. Osorio had three fewer winners than Osaka in the first set, but she also had eight fewer unforced errors, tipping the scale in her favor.

Osorio kept her momentum into the second set, holding a match point on Osaka’s serve at 5-3 and serving for the match at 5-4. Osaka held a total of four break points in that game, but Osorio swatted them all away before closing out the match with a pinpoint forehand winner on the sideline.