Tim Henman applauds Iga Swiatek and Naomi Osaka in a classic tennis match

Former British tennis star Tim Henman hailed the quality of the match between world number one Iga Swiatek and Japan’s Naomi Osaka. Both players were involved in an absolute classic on Wednesday, as the four-time Grand Slam winner managed to keep her calm in tough circumstances and eventually came out on top with a score of 7-6, 1-6, 7-5.

The result was an incredible one, considering Osaka was 3-0 in the third set and was looking set to clinch the tie. She was then 30-0 up when the score was 5-2, and she even had a match point when the score was 5-3. But Swiatek, who is a two-time defending champion and is already regarded as one of the favourites to lift the title, kept her nerve and overcame what proved to be an extremely tough challenge.

Henman, who is working for Eurosport as a pundit in their telecast of the Roland Garros, talked after the match and stated that the fixture had the quality of a Grand Slam final where both players showcased their talent. “Osaka deserves so much credit,” said the former world number four. “She put in an incredible performance. For me that could have been a Grand Slam final, that was the level of tennis.”