Naomi Osaka thought her coach was joking when he told her who would be her next opponent at the 2024 Miami Open.
The Japanese player has been doing quite well at the WTA 1000 tournament in Miami so far, and in the next round, she will take on a challenging opponent. When her coach, Wim Fissette, told her who would it be, Osaka thought he was joking.
There is a reason why the former world no. 1 initially took it as a joke. The Japanese player had seen Caroline Garcia, her next opponent, quite often this year, as they had already played two times this year.
The first meeting happened at the Australian Open, and Garcia was able to win that match in two sets. The second match came in Doha, and Osaka actually won there in straight sets.
Now, the third match is going to happen at the Miami Open after Osaka booked the third round with a win over Elina Svitolina. When her coach Fissette told her that she was facing Garcia, she thought he was joking because what was the likelihood of yet another match this early in the season?
"Yes (laughter). Wim told me and I thought he was joking, but he was not joking. Man, we're friends at this point. We're just, you know, work buddies. We see each other all the time. It's funny. I just want to be seeded so I can just stop playing her, like..."
Garcia is obviously a tricky player who will quite enjoy the conditions in Miami. That makes her a tough out for Osaka, and she would clearly want not to play her.
But here they are, yet another matchup is looming. For Osaka, it's going to be a tough matchup, but she's fancying her chances because the courts play exactly how she likes them.
"I mean, my thoughts? She's an amazing player. I know this. Every match we play is really difficult. It's just going to be interesting playing on these courts because I really like these hard courts."