Winner to face No. 3 seed Jessica Pegula.
Former World No. 1 Naomi Osaka begins her Wimbledon 2025 preparation with a stern test against Liudmila Samsonova of Russia. It will be a battle from the baseline in this all-unseeded affair at the Berlin Tennis Open in Germany. As the Steffi Graf Stadion hosts this contest between two of the WTA’s faithful servants, who will emerge victorious?
Naomi Osaka is a proven match winner on the circuit. A four-time Grand Slam champion, she is yet to prove her might on the grass courts in Europe. Her best performance at Wimbledon remains a Round of 32 appearance in 2017 and 2018. The Japanese sensation has a 17-7 record this year, and a 1-2 record on grass over the past twelve months. However, her break point conversion rate of merely 35% could be partially concerning.
Meanwhile, Liudmila Samsonova enters Berlin after a disheartening outing at the Libema Open. The top seed was ousted in Round-1 by unseeded Canadian – Carson Branstine. Despite reaching the doubles final in the same event, she will be looking to make amends. The former Fed Cup winner needs to stay consistent in order to retain her Top-20 ranking, and her 3-4 record on grass in the recent past is unlikely to make the cut.
Osaka leads the head to head against Samsonova by 2-1. They have faced each other twice in 2024, and once in 2025 (ahead of the Berlin match-up).
The 26-year-old Russian’s solitary victory over her Japanese counterpart was unsurprisingly on clay. When they met on the hard courts at Indian Wells and Miami, the World No. 57 prevailed. At the age of 27, Osaka continues to break new ground and inspire the next generation by moulding a successful tennis career after giving birth.
| Event | Round | Winner | Score |
| 2025 Miami | Round of 64 | Naomi Osaka | 6-2 6-4 |
| 2024 Madrid | Round of 64 | Liudmila Samsonova | 6-2 4-6 7-5 |
| 2024 Indian Wells | Round of 64 | Naomi Osaka | 7-5 6-3 |
| Naomi Osaka | Category | Liudmila Samsonova |
| 4 | Grand Slams | 0 |
| 7 | WTA Singles Titles | 5 |
| 0 | WTA Doubles Titles | 2 |
| 2 | WTA-1000 Titles | 0 |
| R3 (Tokyo 2020) | Olympics Best Performance | – |
| No. 57 | Current World Ranking | No. 20 |
In terms of consistency on this surface, Samsonova holds the edge. The Russian has displayed more control on her groundstrokes, which resulted in a Round of 16 finish at Wimbledon 2021. However, Osaka will be determined to start strong and gather some momentum on grass. It will be a tight encounter on a warm, partly cloudy day in the German capital.
Prediction: Naomi Osaka in three sets.
The implied probability on the money line and the betting market suggests contrasting results. In terms of the odds, Samsonova is likely to pip Osaka.
Naomi Osaka Win: +105
Liudmila Samsonova Win: -135
(According to BetMGM)
