After her thrilling victory in the US Open first round, four-time Slam champion Naomi Osaka broke down in tears. She later explained why she was so motivated and inspired.
Osaka, the 2020 and 2018 US Open champion, defeated Jelena Ostapenko with ease on Tuesday, 6-3, 6-2, looking every bit the true professional.
And after storming into the second round and winning her first top-10 title in four years, Osaka missed the entire previous season due to maternity leave and broke down in tears.
She told reporters after the match: “I mean honestly it’s like a combination of a lot of different things,’ ‘I grew up here, so just seeing kids, and then remembering my daughter, but seeing kids coming and watching me play and just remembering that I was a kid, I guess a long time ago, made me very emotional. Then also just remembered that I came and watched Coco [Gauff] play her semis [last year] and I was in the audience, and I didn’t know if I was going to be able to play again at this level, and just to play Ostapenko who is such a great player and win that match means a lot to me.”
Osaka even acknowledged that she cried more on Tuesday than she did when she won her Grand Slams. Osaka hasn’t advanced past the third round of a Slam since she won the Australian Open in 2021.
She added: “Yeah, just seeing the stadium really full, it meant a lot, because I was, like, ‘Oh, I hope people come watch me play. Yeah, it’s funny though, I feel like I cried a lot more now than I did winning Slams. That’s a little funny.”
Soak it all in, @naomiosaka 🥹 pic.twitter.com/nFLRG0NJX1
— US Open Tennis (@usopen) August 27, 2024
Osaka at the U.S. Open, ranking, and results in 2024
WLWLWLLWLL Currently ranked no.88, the Japanese achieved a compiled 19-16 record in 2024. Naomi is currently playing at the U.S. Open where she beat the world no.10 Jelena Ostapenko 6-3 6-2.
Naomi Osaka will play the world no.723 Anna Danilina in the . They have never competed against each other until now on the main tour.
Osaka won 7 titles in her career: all of them conquered on hard courts. (See the list of her titles)
Naomi Osaka |
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