Marketa Vondrousova produced a flawless display to oust Naomi Osaka in the third round at Tokyo 2020, the latest high-profile shock win before the women's singles quarter-finals at these Olympics.

The Czech 22-year-old raced out to a 4-0 lead that all but sealed the opener before going toe-to-toe with the world No. 2 in the second set, recovering from an early break before breaching Osaka’s serve for a fifth time to seal a 6-1 6-4 victory.

With that, Osaka becomes the third of the top four seeds in the women’s singles draw to depart before the third round is complete, with fourth seed Elina Svitolina facing Maria Sakkari today for a place in the quarter-finals.

For Vondrousova, a last-eight showdown with either Argentina’s Nadia Podoroska or Paula Badosa of Spain awaits, ensuring one of the trio of unseeded Olympic debutants will emerge from the fourth quarter of draw with a shot at a medal.

“I think this is one of the biggest [wins of my career], for sure,” Vondrousova said. “I beat Simona [Halep] twice, but I think Naomi, she is the greatest now, the greatest in the game, and she’s also the face of the Olympics. It was tough for her, I think, to play like this. But I’m too happy now.”

Playing in the cooler conditions under the Ariake Tennis Park Centre Court roof as rain fell over Tokyo on Tuesday morning, Osaka looked set to atone for a loose opening service game with chances to immediately break back. But having survived to consolidate for a 2-0 lead, Vondrousova broke again and had the chance to claim the first five games before the world No. 2 rallied to get on the scoreboard at 1-4.

Still Vondrousova pressed, mixing some assured deep hitting with stop-dead drop shots that left Osaka, often camped near the Olympic rings behind the baseline, with too much ground to make up. The Czech broke for a third time to claim the opener in 28 minutes.

Osaka looked to hit the reset switch entering the second, improving her first serve percentage and patrolling the baseline to take time away from the left-hander. A break in the opening game handed her a platform for a comeback but she became mired in another battle on serve three games later that saw Vondrousova level up at 2-2.

The set remained in the balance with chances for both players before Vondrousova struck with Osaka serving to stay in the match, clinching a famous win on her third match point.

“I wasn’t playing under pressure, but of course the second set was tight, so I was a bit under pressure then, those two match points and then deuce,” she said of the final game. “I’m just very happy with my game today. The first set was amazing. I hope I’ll keep going.

“I needed to change the rhythm because from the back she is amazing both sides, so I knew I had to play slice and drop shots, my lefty serve – that was my plan today.

“I knew she was going to serve better [in the second set], so I was trying to put many returns into play. The end was very tight – it could have gone both ways, so I’m just happy to be through.”

On playing under the Centre Court roof, Vondrousova added: “It was so, so much different. There is no heat and no sun, so I think it was better than outside.”

It is a sorry quirk at these Olympics that Vondrousova’s victory was met only with muted applause from pockets of the Centre Court stadium before the DJ blasted a victory anthem. Quite what the atmosphere would have been like with a cacophonous crowd in attendance this week will forever be a bittersweet thought.

Nevertheless, Vondrousova appreciates the toll that Osaka’s status at these Games must surely have taken over the past week.

“It’s so much pressure, I cannot imagine,” she said. “I know how it is to be under pressure, it’s tough. But I think she didn’t play a bad match – she was fighting all match, staying calm, and she was fighting until the very end.”

Osaka later spoke to press, admitting that she felt the pressure of the occasion playing on home soil at her first Olympic Games.

“For me, I feel like I should be used to it by now,” she said. “But at the same time, I think the scale of everything is a bit higher because of the break that I took. I’m glad I didn’t lose in the first round, at least.

“I’m really glad to be here,” she added. “I’m sad that I lost, of course, but all in all really happy with my first Olympic experience.”