Aoi Ito Falls to H. Dart in Japan Open Qualifying Final

World No. 344 Aoi Ito fell 3-6, 7-6 (8-6), 3-6 to fifth seed H. Dart in a qualifying final at the Kinoshita Group Japan Open Tennis Championships 2026 on Sept. 18 in Osaka, Japan, missing out on a spot in the main draw after a two-hour and forty-minute battle on hard courts.

Qualifying Final Defeat in Osaka

The 22-year-old Ito entered the WTA 250 tournament’s qualifying draw for the third time. She opened this year’s campaign by defeating 12th-seeded T. Grant of Italy in the first qualifying round. In the final qualifying match against 30-year-old H. Dart, currently ranked No. 113, Ito struggled early on her serve and dropped the opening set after conceding four breaks.

Ito rebounded in the second set, saving match points before securing a tight tiebreak 8-6 to force a decider. In the third set, however, Dart claimed four consecutive games from the second game onward. Despite a late push by the Japanese player, Dart closed out the match to seal the victory in 2 hours and 40 minutes, advancing to face fourth seed T. Gibson of Australia in the main draw.

Post-Match Assessment and Power Deficit

Speaking at a post-match press conference, Ito pointed to her physical endurance and court conditions as primary hurdles, noting that the slippery surface extended rallies and drained her stamina. She highlighted a need to sharpen her finishing abilities to shorten matches.

Today’s match showed more resilience than my previous loss to Dart, and I think that aspect was good, Ito said. However, in the final set, the wind and new balls made it a bit difficult to grab momentum, which is a task for the future.

Ito emphasized that long exchanges on slick courts compounded the physical toll. Because the court is slippery, the ball is easier to reach, so the rallies got long and it was pretty tough physically. That is also a future challenge. When matches go past two hours, it gets tough. Even if I had won today, the main draw would have been difficult, so I want to improve my finishing power so that matches can end a bit sooner.

Tournament Schedule and Upcoming Opponents

Dart advances to face Gibson in the opening round of the main draw at the Osaka tournament, which officially opens main-draw play on Sept. 19. Ito exits the singles competition following her qualifying final defeat.