Naomi Osaka says she feels like 'I'm not in my body' on the tennis court after struggling for form ahead of US Open
By Lewis Mason
Published 14/08/2024 at 11:45 GMT+1
Former world No. 1 Naomi Osaka returned to the tennis court at the start of 2024 after taking a maternity break having given birth to her first child in the summer of 2023. However, she has struggled for form and suffered a qualifying exit at the Cincinnati Open in her latest match. After the defeat, Osaka took to social media to share her feelings about how her lack of form "scares" her.
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Naomi Osaka says she does not feel like "I’m in my body” when she takes to the court.
In a lengthy post on social media, Osaka opened up about her struggles to find form since returning from her maternity break.
The four-time grand slam champion gave birth to her first child in July 2023 and was back in action on the WTA Tour six months later at the start of 2024.
However, Osaka has failed to go further than the quarter-finals of a tournament since and lost in the opening round of the Olympics in Paris while representing Japan.
Her latest defeat saw her knocked out in the second round of qualifying at the Cincinnati Open by Ashlyn Krueger.
After taking time to reflect on the loss in Ohio, Osaka posted: “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.
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"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?!?!’”
Despite largely disappointing results since her return in January, Osaka has also enjoyed some success with impressive victories against Caroline Garcia at the Qatar Open, Elina Svitolina in Miami and Ons Jabeur at the Canadian Open.
Osaka continued: "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), however the only feeling I could liken how I feel right now to is being post-partum.
"That scares me because I've been playing tennis since I was 3, the tennis racquet should feel like an extension of my hand.
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“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.
“Nothing in life is promised but I realised that I can promise myself to work as hard as I can and give it my best shot till the very end."
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Osaka’s major triumphs to date came at the Australian Open in 2019 and 2021 and the US Open in 2018 and 2020, and it will be at Flushing Meadows where Osaka next attempts to put her inconsistent form behind her.
She signed off her post by saying: “See you in New York.”
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