Naomi Osaka and Nick Kyrgios are quite friendly with one another, which the Australian spoke about after touching down in Tokyo for the 2022 Japan Open.
Kyrgios will continue his superb 2022 season at the Japan Open in Tokyo, and he spoke with the media upon arrival. Kyrgios held his first practice with good mate Thanasi Kokkinakis, and after, he took some time to tackle a few topics, including that of a fellow player.
In the talk, Kyrgios spoke a bit about Osaka, who is the most prominent player from the country, as well as the highest-ranked player from Japan during most of her career.
Kyrgios praised Osaka for what she brings to the sport, as well as her ability to inspire many people around the world. Due to her heritage, Osaka has people from multiple countries looking up to her.
"Naomi, I love what she brings to the sport. I think she's an amazing athlete. She can play some great tennis, but what she can do off the court is even more inspirational."
"She has so many people looking up to her. She inspires millions of people and I think that's something that I bring, as well."
Osaka has been a bit controversial figure in Japan. While she’s been embraced as one of their own, there were some who publicly rejected her due to her background of not being fully Japanese ethnically.
As for Kyrgios and Osaka, they’ve been good friends for a while, even spending time on the courts together. They actually spent some time on the courts in Japan as well.
In Tokyo, the Australian will undoubtedly want to focus solely on tennis, as he's been enjoying probably the best season of his tennis career, and the Japan Open might present another chance to make it even more successful.
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