Naomi Osaka made a solid return to elite tennis after 15 months out as she defeated Germany's Tamara Korpatsch 6-3 7-6(9) in the first round of the Brisbane International on Monday.
The four-time Grand Slam champion last featured on tour at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo in September 2022 and gave birth to her first child, daughter Shai, in July before starting preparations for this month’s Australian Open.
The 26-year-old showed no signs of rust as she broke her opponent to love in the first game back. She won the opening set in 38 minutes with a sizzling forehand winner.
Osaka dropped serve twice in the second set but she clinched victory after a close tiebreaker.
"I was super nervous playing the entire time but I was really excited to be out here. It feels really good to be back," Osaka said after signing autographs and taking pictures with fans courtside.
"I feel like the last couple of years that I played before I had my daughter, I didn't return as much love as I was given. So I really feel like that's what I want to do in this chapter."
Earlier, Osaka also spent a considerable amount of time on the sidelines after her second title at Melbourne Park, taking a break to prioritise her mental health after pulling out from the French Open in 2021 and another after the U.S. Open the same year.
She was also elated to see the love from fans on her latest comeback.
"I just really appreciate people coming out and cheering for me, because I feel there was a time that I was just a little kid trying to watch my role models play," Osaka added.
"So it feels really surreal sometimes to be playing on these courts."
Osaka will face former world number one Karolina Pliskova, who received a bye into the second round.
"I've played her a couple of times," Osaka told reporters later. "She's such a tough opponent... very different from the match I played just now. Very interested to see what happens."
