LONDON — Wimbledon’s fourth round is set for Sunday, featuring a highly anticipated women’s showdown between world number one Aryna Sabalenka and Naomi Osaka, along with a men’s clash between top seed Jannik Sinner and Japanese qualifier Shintaro Mochizuki.
WOMEN’S FEATURED MATCH: NAOMI OSAKA vs. ARYNA SABALENKA
Osaka, ranked 14th in the world, is hoping the fourth time will be the charm against Sabalenka. The Japanese star has fallen to the Belarusian in all three of their encounters so far in 2026 — at Indian Wells, Madrid, and the French Open.
Before this year, the two hadn’t faced each other in more than seven years. Their only prior meeting came back in 2018, when Osaka defeated Sabalenka on her way to winning her first Grand Slam title at the U.S. Open.
Osaka addressed the losing streak directly, telling reporters: “She’s the number one player in the world. If there is someone I had to lose to, I would pick that ranking position.”
She added: “If anything, I would say I learned from all of those matches, so hopefully I can apply (that).”
Osaka also pointed to the grass surface as a potential advantage for her heading into Sunday’s contest.
“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 following her victory 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,” Osaka added.
Despite her recent dominance over Osaka, Sabalenka isn’t taking the match lightly.
“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.”
MEN’S FEATURED MATCH: JANNIK SINNER vs. SHINTARO MOCHIZUKI
Mochizuki entered Wimbledon ranked 151st in the world and had been struggling with losses on the professional tour. But something clicked once he arrived at the All England Club, where he previously won the junior Wimbledon title back in 2019.
The 23-year-old has turned in the best Grand Slam performance of his career, reaching the round of 16. In the third round, he rallied from a set down to defeat 23rd seed Rafael Jodar, using aggressive net rushes and flat groundstrokes to unsettle the Spaniard.
World number one Sinner has taken notice of his upcoming opponent’s impressive run.
“He’s a very good player, especially on grass. His ball is very low, so it helps a lot. Seems like a very, very aggressive player,” Sinner said. “Very dangerous player. I try to be as prepared as I can.”
Mochizuki himself seems almost puzzled by his own success at this year’s tournament.
“It’s a strange feeling to play Jannik at Wimbledon, especially now this year. I was not winning much before coming here, and I don’t know how I have been winning matches here,” he said.
GAUFF CHANGES HER APPROACH ON SERVE
Coco Gauff has been well known for her struggles with her serve, but heading into her fourth-round match against Belinda Bencic, the American says she’s shifting her mindset — going for power rather than simply trying to land the ball in play.
“I feel like most of the time when my first serve does go in, I’m getting a weaker reply,” said Gauff, who has won her last three meetings with the Swiss player and is chasing her first-ever Wimbledon quarter-final appearance.
“I think it’s much easier to start the points off when you’re on the offensive than if you just get it in and you’re hoping the girl misses. At this level, it’s not going to happen, especially now in the second week,” she added.
SUNDAY ORDER OF PLAY
Centre Court (Play begins at 12:30 p.m. GMT): Roman Safiullin (Russia) vs. 7-Novak Djokovic (Serbia); 1-Aryna Sabalenka (Belarus) vs. 14-Naomi Osaka (Japan); 1-Jannik Sinner (Italy) vs. Shintaro Mochizuki (Japan).
Court Number One (Play begins at 12:00 p.m. GMT): 4-Jessica Pegula (U.S.) vs. 16-Iva Jovic (U.S.); 3-Felix Auger-Aliassime (Canada) vs. 22-Alejandro Davidovich Fokina (Spain); 11-Belinda Bencic (Switzerland) vs. 7-Coco Gauff (U.S.).
Court Number Two (Play begins at 10:00 a.m. GMT): Doubles matches to be announced; 10-Karolina Muchova (Czech Republic) vs. Barbora Krejcikova (Czech Republic); Hubert Hurkacz (Poland) vs. Jan-Lennard Struff (Germany).
