WTA Bad Homburg Day One Round-Up | Naomi Osaka starts strong before rain stops as Fernandez fights back to claim revenge over Boulter

This Sunday marked the start of the WTA 500 Bad Homburg Open, with several top names taking to the court for their opening matches, highlighted by the clash between Katie Boulter and Leylah Fernandez, as well as the debut of four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka. However, the day was heavily disrupted by rain and will continue on Monday, with first-round action still ongoing.

The biggest match of the day came from former US Open finalist Leylah Fernandez, who outlasted wildcard Brit Katie Boulter in a three-hour battle. Liudmila Samsonova also recorded a strong win, while Osaka was unable to even complete her first set against Magdalena Frech. Meanwhile, Iva Jovic did not even step onto court for her match against Xinyu Wang due to rain delays.

The world No. 22 got revenge over Boulter—who had beaten her a few weeks earlier on her Queen’s Club debut—in another match lasting more than three hours. The Canadian and the Brit once again met in a marathon, and this time Fernandez came out on top, securing her first grass-court win of the season (after early exits in Queen’s and Nottingham).

Only the first set was a real battle, with Boulter saving multiple set points and coming back from a break down to force the tiebreak. There, both players were inconsistent on serve, but Boulter eventually edged ahead in a mini-break battle. The first set alone took one hour and 22 minutes.

However, Fernandez did not lose her composure in the following moments. The second set stayed on serve with no major issues until the midpoint, when a run of four consecutive games from the left-hander changed the momentum. She went from 2-3 down to closing the set 6-4 and forcing a decider.

The final set was highly competitive, with Boulter securing the first break after a very long game that included eight break points and up to 14 deuces. However, from that moment on, Boulter lost precision on serve, and Fernandez won three consecutive breaks to close out the victory. A strong display of resilience from the Canadian, who advances to the second round and awaits a potential clash against Iva Jovic (8th seed) or Xinyu Wang—a match that was scheduled for today but was suspended due to rain.

Liudmila Samsonova is beginning to correct her trajectory after a difficult grass swing. The Russian arrived after two consecutive defeats on grass and had dropped out of the top 20 just weeks ago. However, she showed her quality on the surface once again, combining aggressive serving with solid efficiency to overcome a tricky opponent in Katerina Siniakova.

The start was firmly in Samsonova’s favour, as she secured an early break and held it to take control of the set. From there, she leaned on her serve and did not face a single break point. Despite a modest 46% first-serve percentage, she still won 67% of her service points, well above Siniakova’s 54% in the opening set.

In the second set, the dynamic shifted as Siniakova began to trouble her opponent more consistently from the baseline. Samsonova still managed to secure an early break to move ahead 4-1, although she struggled more on serve and had to save multiple break points. Siniakova broke back and returned to the set with a run of three consecutive games.

With the set moving toward a tiebreak, errors from Siniakova opened the door again. Samsonova capitalised, earning a late break in the 12th game to avoid the tiebreak and seal the win, booking her place in the second round, where she will face third seed Elena Svitolina.

The 6th seed Naomi Osaka made her debut in Bad Homburg, starting strongly before gradually losing momentum in a match that was initially under control. The former world No. 1 faced early break points but quickly settled behind her serve and looked sharp in the opening exchanges, dominating the early stages of the match.

After saving those early break points, the four-time Grand Slam champion held firm and built confidence from the baseline, winning three consecutive service games and securing two breaks in succession to move into a commanding 5-0 lead.

However, trouble came when she attempted to close the set. She failed to convert a set point on return and then allowed Frech multiple chances to break back. The Polish player responded without hesitation, winning four consecutive games to shift momentum.

The match became more balanced as Frech continued to push, and at 5-4 with Osaka serving to close the set, the momentum was still in doubt. However, rain interrupted play at that exact moment, forcing the suspension of the match and the eventual end of the day’s schedule in Bad Homburg. The match will resume on Monday at the Centre Court.