The four-time Grand Slam champion from Japan took a 15-month break from tennis following the birth of her daughter, Shai, before returning to the tour in 2023. 19.
Osaka is in Tokyo to compete at the Pan Pacific Open this week and said motherhood has reshaped her priorities. “I wouldn’t say I’m part-timing it, but my entire day doesn’t consist of that,” said the 29-year-old, who is currently ranked world No. Former world number one Naomi Osaka cast doubt over her long-term tennis future on Sunday, saying she would consider quitting the sport if her three-year-old daughter asked her to.
She said her “mindset is changing a lot” with age. “My daughter is my biggest priority,” she said.
Osaka said juggling her responsibilities as a player and a mother was something she was “figuring out little by little”. Osaka, whose mother is Japanese and whose father is from Haiti, said “nobody should have to go through that”. “It’s sad, but I’m used to it on my end,” she said. Osaka said efforts by the WTA to combat social media abuse do not “ever seem to fully work all the way”. “I know that some people are like, ‘OK, if it bothers you that much, stay off social media,'” Osaka said.
