Naomi Osaka’s return to the tennis circuit after a 15-month hiatus has been received with wonderful applause. The winner of four Grand Slam titles has stirred emotions in 2024, and her comeback has drawn great attention, worldwide. On Wednesday, the 26-year-old lost in the second round of the WTA event in Brisbane. She was defeated, not disgraced, so the emotions of a girl champion now wanting to become a Super Mom are grabbing headlines.
Women’s tennis is replete with instances where the players have returned from “maternity breaks” and done well. From Kim Clijsters to Caroline Wozniacki and Serena Williams to Sania Mirza, women’s tennis has seen many champions come back, after maternity breaks. They have faced enormous challenges – physical, mental and emotional – in fighting back.
Someone like Serena, despite all the medical complications post her first delivery, returned and played fantastic tennis. That Super Mom Serena could not win that elusive one more Grand Slam title to equal Margaret Court’s 24 still hurts her. Yet, Serena kept trying, against all odds, before an emotional retirement at the US Open in New York in 2022.
Naomi Osaka, who holds a Japanese passport, spent plenty of time in the United States of America. She was, by her admission, dealing with many complex issues, with the flop show in the Tokyo Olympics attracting criticism. Yet, after delivering child Shai, through her rapper boyfriend Cordae in July 2023, Osaka has shown determination in staging a comeback.
Last year in January, Osaka dropped a bombshell when she announced she was pregnant and was skipping the Australian Open. It was the same Australian Open in 2017 where Serena Williams was eight weeks pregnant and she went on to win the Grand Slam title.
Back in Osaka, she has faced “mental health” issues and even wanted to avoid the media in the past. In 2021, when Osaka pulled out of the French Open, there was enormous sympathy for the young girl. Of course, some at that time said her decision to skip the mandatory press conferences conducted by the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) was wrong. What Osaka underwent at that time, struggling to handle press conferences was well understood.
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The new chapter in her life is love, dating Cordae Amari Dunston, a leading rap singer in the USA. When Osaka was blessed with Shai, she found peace, happiness and a feeling of being “complete.” Yet, to attempt a comeback so soon was not easy.
Postpartum and then getting back to training, is not easy. These are topics which have been spoken at length by Serena and Sania. What it also conveys is the emotions of an athlete, whether it is love, having a child or returning to tennis.
In Osaka’s case, what is the turning point is her fearlessness. No, not in terms of stroke production but to overcome the fear of early losses. People have made wrong comparisons between Rafael Nadal returning and Naomi Osaka. That is fundamentally wrong, for Nadal was battling injuries and fitness issues.
Osaka has been a fantastic fighter and articulated herself well this week. “I almost kind of needed her (Shai) in my life,” she explained in Brisbane, after winning the first round. I’m the type of person that can’t think about myself. I make rash decisions and she’s (Shai) helped me mature so much already. I’m a lot more comfortable with who I am and I’m just very thankful for every day. To know there’s a tiny human who loves me no matter what, and my days light up because of her, that kind of completes me as a person as well,” said Osaka after winning her first round in Brisbane.
Women’s tennis is cut-throat these days where the younger, stronger and fitter players like Iga Swiatek, Coco Gauff and Aryna Sabalenka are hitting the tennis ball with power and pace. Osaka was a great hitter of the ball as well.
In her comeback, she has captured wonderful emotions of womanhood and how she has been able to battle the “demons.” This does make 2024 so special for every sports fan, not just the tennis addicts.
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