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Osaka will return to No. 1 after Pliskova falls in Toronto

Japan's Naomi Osaka will return to world number one next week after Czech third seed Karolina Pliskova's loss Friday to Canada's Bianca Andreescu in the WTA Toronto quarter-finals.

The Canadian ousted Pliskova 6-0, 2-6, 6-4 after one hour and 49 minutes to doom the Czech's bid to regain the top spot for the first time since 2017.

Australia's top-ranked Ashleigh Barty lost Tuesday to ensure she would be dethroned in next week's rankings. Pliskova would have had a chance to overtake her and Osaka had she reached the Toronto final.

Instead, the home-nation heroine advanced to a Saturday matchup against American Sofia Kenin, who defeated Ukraine sixth seed Elina Svitolina 7-6 (7/2), 6-4.

Osaka faces 23-time Grand Slam singles champion Serena Williams in a later quarter-final that will be their first meeting since last year's US Open final.

Williams argued with the umpire late in the match and Osaka was awarded a game as a penalty. She won the contest for her first Grand Slam title but the controversy surrounding the match left her moment of triumph bittersweet.


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