Naomi Osaka hasn't played great tennis lately, and after failing to secure the 2024 Cincinnati Open main draw, the Japanese player took to social media to address her form struggles.
When she returned earlier this year, Osaka had high ambitions, but she hasn't been able to fulfill them. She wanted to be in the Top 10 by the time the US Open came around, but she's barely in the Top 100 at the moment.
Her level has fluctuated wildly. Sometimes, it was really good, but most of the time, it was shaky. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't consistently good either, and she needs that to achieve what she hopes to achieve.
Her most recent matches are a perfect example of that. Due to the strength of the Cincinnati Open draw, Osaka had to play in the qualifying, for which she was granted a wild card.
She won the first match in three sets but then lost in the second set, failing to beat a player whom she could beat. Ashlyn Krueger is a good player and can play well on the hard courts, but she's likely not a player who will challenge for Grand Slams anytime soon.
Osaka wants that level, so not being able to overcome a player like Krueger doesn't bode well for her ambitious plans. After that latest loss, Osaka took to social media to address her fans.
"I've been trying to figure out how I feel for the past several hours. In a weird way I've come to appreciate losses, you don't play tennis for 20+ years without your fair share of them."
"You learn from a loss and then eagerly await your next opportunity to put what you learned to test. My biggest issue currently isn't losses though, my biggest issue is that I don't feel like I'm in my body."
"It's a strange feeling, missing balls I shouldn't miss, hitting balls softer than I remember I used to. I try and tell myself "it's fine you're doing great, just get through this one and keep pushing", mentally it's really draining though. Internally I hear myself screaming "what the hell is happening?!?!!"."
Osaka wrote a really long and emotional message in which she spoke directly to her fans. This was an interesting move for Osaka, who spent much of her career away from the media spotlight.
"Don't get me wrong, I've played a handful of matches this year that I felt like I was myself and I know this moment is probably just a small phase from all the new transitions (clay, grass, clay, hard etc), however the only feeling I could liken how I feel right now to is being postpartum."
"That scares because I've been playing tennis since I was 3, the tennis-- racket should feel like an extension of my hand. I don’t understand why everything has to feel almost brand new again. This should be as simple as breathing to me but it’s not and I genuinely did not give myself grace for that fact until just now."
While the nature of the letter seems disappointing, it ends on a very positive note. Osaka explains how she's enjoying this process, enjoying the suffering because she wants to teach something to her daughter.
That's been a theme since her comeback this year, as she wants to show her daughter what her mother is capable of.
"I love the process (though the process doesn’t love me sometimes haha), putting in work every day and eventually having the opportunity to get to where you want to be."
"I know life isn’t guaranteed so I want to do the best that I can with the time that I have, I want to teach my daughter that she can achieve so many things with hard work and perseverance."
"I want her to aim for the stars and never think her dreams are too big. Nothing in life is promised but I realized that I can promise myself to work as hard as I can and give it my best shot till the very end. See you in New York."
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