(Tokyo) Japanese tennis player Naomi Osaka, former world number one away from the circuit for more than a year, displayed on Friday her ambition to return to the forefront in 2024, by participating in the Paris Olympic Games and winning other Grand Slam titles.
“I clearly want to win other Grand Slams, with, I suppose, the emphasis on Roland-Garros and Wimbledon (which she never won, Editor’s note), and also participate in the Paris Olympics,” declared Osaka, 26, to Japanese television channel NHK.
She added that she was at the same time “nervous”, “happy and impatient” at the idea of attempting this return to the forefront, which will begin with a participation in the WTA 500 tournament in Brisbane (Australia) at the end of December, a week before the opening of the first Grand Slam of the season, in Melbourne.
Naomi Osaka further explained that she wanted to evolve her game. “During the first chapter of my career, I kind of got away with just being myself, playing on instinct… Today, I think I want to be someone who understands the game a lot better,” she explained.
Winner of four Grand Slam titles, from 2018 to 2021, the Japanese occupied the place of world No.1 in 2019. She was also selected to be the last torchbearer of the Olympic flame in Tokyo in 2021.
But Osaka subsequently experienced mental health concerns, then decided to prioritize her private life, giving birth to her first child last July. Absent from the circuit since September 2022, it has fallen beyond 600e place in the WTA rankings.
At NHK, however, she affirmed that the birth of her daughter constituted an additional advantage when relaunching her career.
“I’ve never been a great person to play for myself… So I like the feeling of having the responsibility to take care of Shai, to show her off to the world… I I feel a bit like I’m playing for her.”