Madrid takeaways: Bronzetti tops Osaka for first time

The third time was the charm for Lucia Bronzetti

View Profile against Naomi Osaka

View Profile on Tuesday at the Mutua Madrid Open, as the Italian earned her first-ever win against the former World No. 1 in the first round of the clay-court WTA 1000 event, 6-4, 2-6, 6-4. 

Madrid: Draws | Scores | Order of play | Tournament info

Bronzetti, ranked No. 59, was 0-2 against Osaka previously -- including a three-set lost last spring at Roland Garros -- but came through the opening round in a 2-hour and 21-minute match, reaching the second round in Madrid for the second year in a row.

The 26-year-old now boasts four career wins against former World No. 1s -- three of which have come this year. She was Simona Halep's final opponent -- beating the Romanian at her home tournament in Cluj-Napoca in Halep's last career match -- and also topped two-time champion Victoria Azarenka

View Profile at the Australian Open in January. 

Read on for more top stories from Bronzetti's victory.

Both players arrived searching for form: The Italian entered Madrid on a three-match losing streak, including a straight-sets loss to French teenager Tiantsoa Rakotomanga Rajaonah

View Profile last week in Rouen despite being ranked nearly 250 places above her at the time. Osaka, meanwhile, was playing her first match since losing in the fourth round of the Miami Open to Jasmine Paolini

View Profile almost a month ago.

The four-time major champion looked sharp on serve in the early stages as she led through the first five games. But the crucial break in the opener came for Bronzetti at 3-3, as she won three points in a row from 30-15 -- all on missed groundstrokes by Osaka.

Will Bronzetti snap another winless spell in the next round? Seeking her third third-round at a WTA 1000 event, Bronzetti advances to face No. 5 seed and Australian Open champion Madison Keys

View Profile . She hopes to snap another skid in that match, seeking to turn around an 0-8 head-to-head record against Top 10 players, and also an 0-2 mark against Keys.