Naomi Osaka believes regaining self-belief in her game will be critical in her return to professional tennis.
The four-time Grand Slam champion began her comeback to the sport following maternity leave at the start of the year in Australia. So far, Osaka has played three tournaments and won just one out of four matches played. Her sole victory was against Tamara Korpatsch in the first round of the Brisbane International before losing to Karolina Pliskova. She has also suffered losses to Caroline Garcia at the Australian Open and Danielle Collins in Dubai.
“I’m feeling pretty good about myself which is a bit strange because I think I had less confidence in my last tournament,” Osaka said during an interview with Sky Tennis.
“It’s nice to be back and see everyone.”
Currently in the early stages of her return, Osaka is ranked 757th in the world but is using her protected ranking and wild cards to play in tournaments. As part of her return, minor adjustments have been made to her game. However, the mental side of the sport will also play a crucial role in her bid to return to the top of women’s tennis.
“I was changing my return a little bit so it was tough to play a match and not feel comfortable with what you’re doing. You kind of want to revert to your old style.” She explained.
“I think for me the biggest thing is being confident in myself and knowing that I don’t have to go for winners when I don’t need to and trusting myself a lot more.”
Still only 26, the Japanese player has won seven WTA titles, held the No.1 ranking for 25 weeks and earned more than $21m in prize money. She is hoping to add more silverware to her collection in the future with her daughter motivating her. Osaka has decided to not travel on the Tour with her child, who was born in July 2023.
Guiding her on the Tour is coach Wim Fissette whom she had previously worked with. Fissette is the former mentor of Australian Open finalist Qinwen Zheng and reportedly stopped their collaboration last year to coach Osaka once again.
“I don’t open up that easily so to have someone around that I’m comfortable with and already understands me is something that saves a lot of time.” She said.
“Also sometimes I don’t need to talk to him for him to understand what I’m thinking.”
Osaka’s next test will be at the Doha Open. In the first round, she has a rematch against France’s Garcia but has played down the suggestion that their recent clash would help her in any way.
“I don’t really tweak my game for other people. I’m not necessarily the type of person who needs a lot of background information on someone. Knowing the pace of her ball and having that awareness going in the match is good but she probably feels the same.” Osaka concluded.
