Naomi Osaka of Japan the Brisbane International tennis event in Brisbane, Australia on Jan. 1, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AP
Naomi Osaka’s first win at the elite degree since turning into a mom didn’t come simply. It did come on Day 1 of the 12 months, although. So that was two objects Osaka checked off the checklist on January 1 for her comeback to skilled tennis.
The former No. 1-ranked Osaka was damaged whereas serving for the match at 5-3 in the second set and wanted three match factors earlier than changing in the tiebreaker for a 6-3, 7-6 (9) victory over Tamara Korpatsch in the first spherical of the Brisbane International.
“I was super nervous the whole time,” Osaka, 26, stated of her comeback match towards the 28-year-old German participant.
A two-time Australian and U.S. Open champion, Osaka pulled out of final 12 months’s Australian Open in Melbourne earlier than later revealing she was pregnant. The U.S.-based Japanese participant and her associate, rapper Cordae, turned dad and mom to daughter Shai in Los Angeles in July.
Osaka had solely performed one recreation since her first-round exit at the 2022 U.S. Open. She was main Daria Gavrilova 1-0 at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo in September of that 12 months earlier than the Australian retired from the match with damage.
Osaka stated she has a renewed focus on residing in the second when it comes to her tennis.
“The last couple of years that I played before I had my daughter, I didn’t return as much love as I was given,” she instructed the crowd at Pat Rafter Arena. “So I really feel like that’s what I want to do in this chapter.
“I simply actually respect individuals popping out and other people figuring out me and cheering for me.
Reigning Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka, Elena Rybakina, Jelena Ostapenko, Victoria Azarenka, Sofia Kenin and Sloane Stephens are additionally in the 64-player girls’s draw at the Brisbane International, certainly one of the key tune-up occasions for the Australian Open in Melbourne.
