One of the sport’s few stars is back on the court. That doesn’t guarantee the sport has learned from its mistakes
Naomi Osaka is a lot of things. She’s a woman. She’s a mom. She’s great at her job. She’s Black. She’s Asian. And when you’re more than what simple people can comprehend, they usually don’t know how to treat you. Here’s to tennis learning from their mistakes when it comes to Osaka — but we shouldn’t hold our breath.
Earlier this week, Osaka won her first competitive match since the Fall of 2022, 6-3, 7-6 (9), over Tamara Korpatsch at the Brisbane International. Osaka hasn’t been around much. Coming into the week she’d only played one competitive match since the 2022 U.S. Open.
“It’s a big change overnight,” Osaka said about returning to the sport as a mother. “For me, I love it a lot because, in a way, I would say (Shai, her daughter), has helped me grow up so much so quickly.
“Off the court, I’m more aware of people and I appreciate them a lot more — even my opponents and everything,” she added. “On the court, it’s just helping me be strong and staying in the moment more.”
In case you forgot, ever since she came on the scene, tennis has gone out of its way to let Osaka know they don’t want her around.
She’s been heckled, which makes no sense given how great she is at tennis, on top of the fact that tennis is supposed to be a “sophisticated” sport with decorum.
Other greats within the sport have taken shots at her, like when Novak Djokovic did it because Osaka wanted to pay a fine rather than do press conferences after matches. And certain “media members” haven’t had any tact when asking questions.
“You are not crazy about dealing with us, especially in this format, yet you have a lot of outside interests that are served by having a media platform,” Paul Daugherty of the Cincinnati Enquirer asked in 2021. “When you say I’m ‘not crazy about dealing with you guys,’ Osaka responded, “what does that refer to?” Osaka was pointing to how Daugherty had started a question with “You are not crazy” when addressing someone who’d become one of the faces of mental health in sports at the time. This is the same woman whose introduction to one of the biggest stages in the sport was met with boos, as people were mad when she defeated Serena Williams in the 2018 U.S. Open.
“I just want to tell you guys, she played well and this is her first Grand Slam,” Williams tearfully said that day. “Let’s make this the best moment we can.”
It’s no surprise that Osaka stepped away from the game in 2021 for her own mental health, and took her time with her pregnancy and returning to tennis as a mother.
As Osaka transitions back to being a full-time player on the circuit — if that’s what she ultimately decides to do — she will be back playing a sport that is still led by a Black woman, as Coco Gauff is the new “it” girl. The $22.7 million that Gauff made in 2023 means that she was the highest-paid female athlete.
Osaka’s run in Australia ended when she lost in the second round, 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4, to Karolina Pliskova. “The week is definitely shorter than I wanted it to be,” she said. “I feel like I’m pretty good where I am right now. Even the last time I played her, I think I played better today.” She went on to say that she viewed the tournament as a “personal win” because she was “doubting if I could play with everyone,” just weeks prior.
“I’ve trained so hard since giving birth, I need to enjoy these moments,” she explained. “I do feel different. I mean, of course I feel sad, but the sadness is me being like, ‘Aww, I wish I could have done better, because I know I’m spending so much time away from her (Shai), so I want it to be worth it somehow.” Motherhood has changed Naomi Osaka. I just hope tennis has changed enough to stop hating on her.
