Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka has big plans for 2024 despite suffering a first-round exit at the recently-concluded Australian Open 2024.
Osaka made a return to the court after an almost 16-month absence at the start of 2024. The Japanese gave birth to a baby girl, Shai, in July last year.
However, her comeback wasn’t the one the four-time Grand Slam winner had dreamt of as she lost to Caroline Garcia 4-6, 6(2)-7, in straight sets in the first round of slam Down Under.
There were speculations that she might take another break but the 26-year-old returned to the court without delay. She was asked what motivated her to participate in the Abu Dhabi Open.
“I guess not doing so well in Australia, which was unfortunate. But I think I need to play as many matches as possible and I’m hoping that I’m able to find a rhythm here,” she told The National ahead of the start of her Mubadala Abu Dhabi Open campaign.
Back then, Osaka would wear headphones even when she wasn’t listening to music in order to cope with social anxiety. However, much has changed as the 26-year-old now manages to interact with others freely.
“Since I’ve landed, I’ve experienced so much culture and I’ve been able to do so many fun things,” said the 26-year-old Osaka. “I realise that travelling is something that makes me really happy and I guess while I was pregnant, I was told to not travel and it’s not too healthy to be on the plane.
So I was kind of seeing everyone around me travel a lot and I think it feels really nice to be the one to be on adventures again. It’s so beautiful here and I’ve also never been to Abu Dhabi. So I just want to soak it in as much as I can.”
During her pregnancy, Osaka gave an interview where she stated that she aims to win eight more slams. When asked if she still feels that way, the Japanese admitted she does.
“I definitely still feel that way,” she responds. “Australia gave me a little bit of self-doubt, just because I wish I could have played more matches and I always do really well in Australia. So it was a bit of a harsh reality.
“But I still think my level is improving every day and I think that I can be better, and I hope that I will be better. I’m always the type of person that would rather set really high goals and maybe I’ll do only 25 per cent of that but the 25 per cent is still really amazing.
“I don’t think that I would have come back and be like, ‘Oh my goal is to get to the quarter-final of a slam’, which is still really good but that’s not why I’m spending time away from Shai.”
