Two tiebreaks. That is what it took Osaka to get past Anastasia Zakharova in the opening round, 7-6 7-6, and she said afterwards that the early rounds are the ones that make her nervous. Winning ugly still counts, but it is not the profile of a player about to breeze through a seasoned opponent who knows exactly what she is doing on a hard court. Siniakova had the cleaner day one, seeing off Elisabetta Cocciaretto 6-3 6-2 without any fuss. A former world number one in doubles, she reads the ball early, returns beautifully and thrives in the fast exchanges that Flushing Meadows produces at night. She does not have the raw power to trade blow for blow across three sets, but she does not need to for this line. The head to head favours Osaka at 2-1, and both of those wins came in straight sets, so history is not being ignored here, only priced. Osaka is capable of overwhelming anyone when the first serve lands and the forehand is clean. She has just not looked that settled yet this week, and tight is how sets get handed over. One dip in concentration, one loose service game at the wrong moment, and the underdog covers. This has the feel of a long night rather than a quick one.