US Open 2024: Naomi Osaka feels better as she returns to the site of two of her Grand Slam titles
Naomi Osaka is at the U.S. Open to compete for the first time in two years, and she says returning to the site of two of her four Grand Slam titles gives her a boost — but not because she focuses on her past success there
NEW YORK (AP) — Naomi Osaka is at the U.S. Open to compete for the first time in two years, and she said Saturday that returning to the site of two of her four Grand Slam titles gives her a boost — but not because she focuses on her past success there.
No, Osaka explained, it's more about hearkening further back, to the days when she was a child in New York and would come as a fan to watch “all the famous players that you could name,” such as Rafael Nadal, Serena and Venus Williams, and Maria Sharapova.
“I do think coming to this specific tournament helps me out. But also, whenever I step foot here, I don’t really think about the two tournaments I won,” said the 26-year-old Osaka, who was born in Japan to a Japanese mother and Haitian father; the family moved to New York when she was 3. “I just think about how I felt when I was a kid, because I did grow up coming here, and I have such vivid memories of watching my favorite players. It’s more of a childhood nostalgia that I really enjoy.”
She won the U.S. Open in 2018 and 2020, the Australian Open in 2019 and 2021, and used to be ranked No. 1. But after a combination of time off — first for mental health breaks, then because she gave birth — and so-so results this season — she is 18-15 in 2024 — Osaka is currently 85th. She will face No. 10 seed Jelena Ostapenko, the 2017 French Open champion, on Tuesday at Flushing Meadows.
