Naomi Osaka attracted all the attention by beating Serena Williams in the 2018 US Open final. Osaka, a gift of Japanese tennis to the world, makes a name for herself even though she is only 26 years old.
Naomi Osaka was born on October 16, 1997. Her mother is Japanese Tamaki Osaka and her father is Haitian Leonard Francois. Due to Japanese law, Naomi was given her mother's surname because her father was Haitian. Naomi, the second child of the family, became interested in tennis at an early age, just like her older sister.
The professional tennis player is a name that stands out not only with her sportsmanship but also with her other characteristics. Osaka, said to be an excellent role model, inspires especially young people. Due to her success in sports and other characteristics, Time Magazine included her in its list of the 100 most influential people of 2020.
Naomi Osaka (born October 16, 1997) is a Japanese professional tennis player. She has been ranked world No. 1 in singles by the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) and is the first Asian player to hold the top ranking in singles. Osaka is a four-time Grand Slam singles champion, with two Australian Open and two US Open titles. Her seven titles on the WTA Tour also include two at the Premier Mandatory level. At the 2018 US Open and the 2019 Australian Open, Osaka won her first two major titles in back-to-back tournaments. She was the first woman to win successive major singles titles since Serena Williams in 2015, and the first to win her first two in successive majors since Jennifer Capriati in 2001.
There is a very important relationship between the beginning of Naomi Osaka's career and the Williams sisters. In 1999, inspired by the Williams sisters' father, Naomi's father decided to direct his daughters to tennis. The father, who moved his family to the USA for this purpose, started playing tennis with Naomi when she was only 3 years old. Later, the family settled in Florida and she began to devote almost all her days to tennis.
Osaka explained years later that she always aimed to beat her sister in this process and stated that she achieved this only after 12 years. Perhaps this rivalry with her sister is her most important source of motivation and this is how the foundations of her current success were laid.
Although the Haitian father was confident that his daughters would be successful in their tennis careers, the Japanese mother was generally skeptical about this issue. However, the years proved the father right and Naomi Osaka managed to become a successful tennis player well known to the whole world.
Naomi Osaka Achievements
Naomi Osaka did not participate in youth tournaments and participated directly in the professional tours. The Japanese tennis player, who turned professional in 2013, was chosen Newcomer of the Year by the Women's Tennis Association in 2016. Thus, she gained the first success of her career. Just 2 years later, in 2018, she became the champion in the India Wells tournament.
In September 2018, the Grand Slam championship came, where the whole world would notice Osaka. Osaka defeated Serena Williams in the US Open final on September 9, 2018, and became the champion. This marked the first time a Japanese tennis player had won a Grand Slam. Osaka, who won the Australian Open championship at the very beginning of 2019, suddenly became the world number one in women's singles.
Osaka suffered from knee injuries from time to time after the championships in 2018 and 2019 and could not keep full form. The famous Japanese tennis player could not achieve any significant success in the following period.