Naomi Osaka continued her winning streak against Liudmila Samsonova for the second consecutive year at a WTA 1000 event during the Sunshine Double. Just like last year, the former world number one Osaka defeated Samsonova in straight sets.

Osaka defeated the No. 24 seed Samsonova with a score of 6-2, 6-4 at the Miami Open presented by Itaú on Thursday night. Osaka, who was a finalist at the Miami Open in 2022, resisted a late comeback attempt from her opponent to win the match in 1 hour and 22 minutes. This victory mirrors her win against Samsonova at Indian Wells last year.

After an early exit at Indian Wells this year, Osaka has regained momentum in Miami. She followed up her recent victory over Yuliia Starodubtseva with this win against Samsonova. In 2025, Osaka’s win-loss record now stands at 8-3.

Throughout most of the match, Osaka’s service games were strong against Samsonova, who is ranked 21st and had reached the quarterfinals at Indian Wells the previous week.

Osaka secured 79 percent of her first-serve points and three-quarters of her second-serve points in this powerful match. She also served six aces, slightly below her season average of 6.5 per match.

Osaka’s serving performance could have been even more dominant, but she couldn’t close out the match at 5-3 in the second set, despite having a match point on Samsonova’s serve at 5-2. In that game, Samsonova earned her first break points of the match and broke back with a forehand winner, narrowing the score.

However, Osaka’s return game was equally impressive, winning 62 percent of points on Samsonova’s second serve. She quickly recovered and broke serve to secure the victory.

Osaka’s next opponent will be wild card Hailey Baptiste from the United States. Earlier on Thursday, Baptiste, ranked No. 98, achieved her third Top 20 win by defeating No. 12 seed Daria Kasatkina in a close match 3-6, 6-4, 7-5.

Osaka and Baptiste previously played in the quarterfinals in Auckland earlier this year, which was their first encounter. Osaka won that match 6-7(2), 6-1, 6-2 and went on to finish as runner-up to Clara Tauson in New Zealand.

Danielle Collins, the No. 14 seed and defending Miami champion, also advanced to the third round with a victory in the night session. She defeated Sorana Cirstea of Romania 6-4, 7-6(3) in the last match on stadium court on Thursday. Collins maintains a perfect 3-0 record against Cirstea after this 1-hour and 40-minute match.

Collins, a Florida resident, has a history of strong performances in Miami, including a semifinal appearance in 2018 and a quarterfinal run in 2022, in addition to her title in 2024. By defeating Cirstea, Collins improved her Miami main-draw record to 19-5.

In her title defense journey, Collins will next face qualifier Rebeka Masarova of Switzerland for the first time. Masarova also had a notable win on Thursday, upsetting Donna Vekic 6-1, 6-3 to achieve her third career Top 20 victory.