Osaka seeks to break Sabalenka spell as Wimbledon's fourth round begins

LONDON, July 4 : Wimbledon's fourth round begins on Sunday with women's world number one Aryna Sabalenka taking on Naomi Osaka, while men's top seed Jannik Sinner goes up against high-flying Japanese qualifier Shintaro Mochizuki.

TOP WOMEN'S MATCH: NAOMI OSAKA V ARYNA SABALENKA

Japan's Osaka will be hoping it will be fourth time lucky when she faces Sabalenka, having lost all three of their meetings this year - at Indian Wells, Madrid and the French Open.

Prior to 2026, the pair had not crossed paths for over seven years, with Osaka winning their first-ever clash en route to her maiden Grand Slam triumph at the U.S. Open in 2018.

"She's the number one player in the world. If there is someone I had to lose to, I would pick that ranking position," the world number 14 told reporters.

"If anything, I would say I learned from all of those matches, so hopefully I can apply (that)."

Osaka added that playing the Belarusian on grass could be the difference.

"My confidence is pretty high. For me, I know what my grass court tennis looks like. It gives me a pretty stable mindset going into the match no matter who I play," she said after her win over Daria Kasatkina.

"I also don't really have as many doubts as I did on clay. Maybe it would be a little bit better for me on grass."

Sabalenka, meanwhile, is cautious about the contest despite her recent wins over Osaka.

"Always been a tricky match. She's very aggressive player... every time she plays me, she's more focused," Sabalenka said.

"Every time it's a battle. Every time it's high-level matches. Super excited to play her."

TOP MEN'S MATCH: JANNIK SINNER V SHINTARO MOCHIZUKI

Japanese qualifier Mochizuki, ranked 151st in the world, came into Wimbledon after a string of tour-level losses.

But a