Naomi Osaka has decided to avoid a two-week break until her next tournament by signing up for a WTA 125K event at the 2025 Saint Malo Open.
Osaka started her clay court season later than many other WTA players. She chose not to compete on the green clay at the 2025 Charleston Open or last week at either the 2025 Porsche Tennis Grand Prix or the Rouen Open.
The former world No. 1's 2025 Madrid Open campaign ended quickly. Lucia Bronzetti defeated her in the opening round after a match that featured much powerful hitting from both women.
Combined ATP and WTA 1000-level tournaments, which are almost two weeks long, create a conundrum for players who lose in the early rounds, as it can lead to a long gap until the next month.
The ATP and WTA Tours attempt to mitigate this by offering players the option to compete during the second week of 1000-level events. Next week, there are 125K tournaments on the WTA circuit in Saint-Malo and Catalonia.
Osaka's place on the entry list in Saint-Malo was confirmed on the tournament's social media pages. It will undoubtedly lead to a surge in ticket sales, since players of her prestige rarely play at WTA 125K level.
Not going two weeks without playing another match seems sensible from Osaka. She is not as natural on clay as she is on hard courts, and will probably need to compete more to feel ready for the French Open at Roland Garros.
Osaka also deserves credit for resisting the temptation to take it easy during a time of the season when she is not as naturally equipped. The four-time Grand Slam champion has the right mindset for improving on the dirt.
Although Osaka's most successful surface by far is hard courts, she almost pulled off an extraordinary victory against Iga Swiatek at the 2024 French Open, who has won four of the last five iterations of the tournament in Paris.
Osaka had a match point to beat Swiatek in the second round after a stunning display of hitting, reaching a level she had never previously shown on clay, wowing the fans at Roland Garros with her shot-making.
Swiatek somehow managed to claw her way back and overcome Osaka. Although heartbreaking, it must have given the 27-year-old hope that future success on clay is possible if she continues to work hard.
It will be interesting to see if any players can eclipse Swiatek on clay this season, which is probably the most challenging task in women's tennis. Aryna Sabalenka is considered by many to be the most likely woman to do that.
Sabalenka has won two Madrid Open titles and had three match points to defeat Swiatek in Madrid last year before succumbing to defeat. That match was one of the best women's battles in tennis history.
Swiatek beat Sabalenka more easily two weeks later in the 2024 Italian Open final. The four-time French Open winner could slip lower than her current ranking of No. 2 if she does not defend her points from last year's clay-court tournaments.
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