WTA: Naomi Osaka's start to a better 2022 season?
Ex-world number one Naomi Osaka has already landed in Australia - at the beginning of the season, the Japanese is under a lot of pressure.
by tennisnet.com
last edit: Dec 27, 2021, 02:27 pm
The last official competition match so far was played by Naomi Osaka in the third round of the US Open 2021, where she was defeated by the eventual finalist Leylah Fernandez from Canada after three contested sets. This was followed by an early end of the season for the Japanese, who in 2021 was mainly struggling with mental health problems. The fuss about her person was expressed for the 24-year-old in anxiety and depression. For her aggressive handling of her disease, the current world number 13 reaped. Unreserved applause from (ex) colleagues and was named one of the 25 most influential women worldwide by the renowned "Financial Times".
Under pressure in Australia, free travel from April
The start of the new 2022 season is now imminent for Osaka: The four-time Grand Slam winner has now landed in Australia to start at the WTA Tour 250 event in Melbourne. After the preparatory tournament, you can go straight to the Australian Open facility to prepare perfectly for the first Grand Slam tournament of the year for two weeks. And to honor the truth - the athletic pressure to succeed on the lady from Osaka is enormous at the beginning of the year, as the right-hander has to defend the title in the "Happy Slam", which she won in the final against the US American last year Jennifer Brady was able to secure.
In the event of an early elimination from the major event in "down under", there is even a risk of falling out of the top 50 in the WTA ranking - which would certainly be a heavy blow for the successful player from the land of the rising sun. It will also be exciting to see how Osaka will tackle the handling of the media in the new season. Relaxed press conferences - yes or no? What could take the pressure off for Osaka a little is a look into the somewhat more distant future, i.e. beyond Australian swing. As of the beginning of April, Osaka has practically no more points to defend. A comeback to higher ranking spheres seems to be practically assured from then on at the latest.