NAOMI OSAKA AND KAROLÍNA MUCHOVÁ TO PLAY FOR THE TITLE – SINGLES FINAL MOVED FORWARD TO 11:00 A.M. ON SATURDAY
A four-time Grand Slam champion against a former French Open finalist: the final of the Bad Homburg Open powered by Solarwatt between Naomi Osaka and Karolína Muchová on Saturday (11:00 a.m.) promises to be an exciting contest. The Japanese star enters her first grass-court final as the slight favorite.
Osaka gained further confidence on Friday with a 6–3, 6–3 semifinal victory over Xinyu Wang. Without dropping a set, the former world No. 1 reached her first final of 2026. “I’m very satisfied with my performance. My preparation for grass differs greatly from previous years,” Osaka said, referring to her Polish coach Tomasz Wiktorowski. “He places much greater emphasis on different aspects than the coaches before him and simplifies many things.” Above all, the two-time Australian Open and US Open champion’s serve has been exceptionally strong. When her first serve landed, Osaka won nearly 80 percent of the points.
Osaka Praises Muchová’s Versatile Style of Play
Osaka has won three of her five previous meetings with Muchová. The 29-year-old Czech player ended the remarkable run of tournament surprise Elena-Gabriela Ruse of Romania with a 6–4, 6–4 victory on a memorable semifinal day that saw record temperatures of up to 41°C (106°F). The match was suspended for around 90 minutes after the first set because of the extreme heat.
“It’s simply great that so many people are here supporting us despite the difficult weather conditions,” said the fourth-seeded Muchová, who already won the title in Doha this season and will be aiming for the third WTA title of her career on Saturday.
Interestingly, ahead of the final in the Kurpark, Osaka once said about the versatile Muchová: “I always enjoy watching Karolína play!”
Weather Conditions: Adjustments Made to Protect Everyone Involved
Already at midday on Friday, the schedule for Saturday’s finals day was adjusted in response to the extreme weather conditions forecast, in order to protect the health and safety of players, spectators, and all event staff.
As a result, the singles final on Saturday will begin at 11:00 a.m., two hours earlier than originally planned. To ensure safe and orderly entry, access to the Spielbank Bad Homburg Centre Court will be available from 9:30 a.m., while the VIP area will open at 10:00 a.m.
The doubles final between Ellen Perez/Demi Schuurs (Australia/Netherlands, No. 3 seeds) and Aldila Sutjiadi/Vera Zvonareva (Indonesia/Russia) will take place immediately following the singles final.
