Naomi Osaka and Aryna Sabalenka paved contrasting paths to tennis stardom. At Indian Wells, they cross

Sunday at the BNP Paribas Open, Aryna Sabalenka wore a placid smile to her news conference, serenity personified in a baby-pink top after sailing to a third-round victory over Jaqueline Cristian. A reporter asked her about her next match, and what it might be like to face fellow four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka again. Sabalenka and Osaka have only squared off once before, in the fourth round of the 2018 U.S. Open that Osaka would go on to win. Sabalenka’s smile widened. Her eyes floated