Naomi Osaka is a professional tennis player from Japan who has won four Grand Slam singles titles, including two US Open wins and two Australian Open titles. She became the first Japanese player to win a Grand Slam singles championship after defeating her hero Serena Williams in the finals of the US Open in 2018. She was born in Japan and raised in America. Forbes has labeled her the highest-paid female athlete of all time for the past two years. She was named one of the ‘2020 Sports Illustrated Sportspersons of the Year’ and twice appeared on Time’s annual list of the 100 most influential people for her advocacy and support for the ‘Black Lives Matter’ movement.
Childhood and Adolescence
Naomi Osaka was born in Ch-ku, Osaka, Japan, to Haitian father Leonard François and Japanese mother Tamaki Osaka on October 16, 1997. Because her maternal grandparents did not recognize her parents’ relationship, the family migrated to the United States when she was three years old, settling in Valley Stream, New York on Long Island.
Her father was inspired to teach her and her older sister Mari tennis despite their lack of expertise after seeing Richard Williams’ success with his daughters Serena and Venus. He faithfully followed Williams’ “blueprint” for training his two girls from an early age, even moving the family to Florida in 2006 to provide them with better chances.
Career of Naomi Osaka
Naomi Osaka, who never competed on the ITF Junior Circuit before making her ITF Women’s Circuit debut on her 14th birthday in October 2011, has lost four times in the ITF finals. She won her first match in the WTA (Women’s Tennis Association) main draw at the 2014 Stanford Classic against former US Open Champion Samantha Stosur after turning professional in September 2013.
Despite failing to win another WTA main draw match in 2015, she rose in the rankings and had her professional breakthrough at the 2016 Pan Pacific Open, reaching her maiden WTA final at the age of 18. Despite losing in the final against Caroline Wozniacki, she rose to number 50 in the WTA rankings and was named ‘WTA Newcomer of the Year.’
Naomi Osaka had a poor year in 2017, winning only two main draw matches at all of the events she competed in. She rebounded the next year, winning the Indian Wells Open by defeating two top-ten opponents, including then-No. 1 player Simona Halep.
In the first round of the Miami Open in March 2018, she faced and overcame her childhood idol Serena Williams. She overcame Williams in the final of the US Open later that year to earn her first Grand Slam championship and became the first Japanese woman to win a Grand Slam singles title.
After defeating Petra Kvitová in the Australian Open on January 28, 2019, Naomi Osaka became the first Asian player to become world No. 1 after finishing 2018 as No. 4 in the WTA rankings. She tied Serena Williams for the most straight Grand Slam singles victories with this victory, although she struggled for the rest of the year until withdrawing from the WTA Finals due to injury.
Osaka reached the finals of the Cincinnati Open and the US Open after the tour restarted in 2020, despite substandard performances in the Brisbane International and the Australian Open prior to the COVID-19 pandemic stoppage. She faced Victoria Azarenka both times, and although defaulting in the Cincinnati Open finals due to a hamstring injury, she won her second US Open title in three years.
In 2021, she defeated Serena Williams in the semifinals and Jennifer Brady in the final to win her second Australian Open championship and fourth Grand Slam in four years. She competed in the Tokyo Olympic Games after withdrawing from the 2021 French Open and skipping the Wimbledon Championships. She made an unexpected exit in the third round.
Achievements & Awards
Naomi Osaka is the first Japanese player to win a Grand Slam singles title and the first Asian to reach the top of the WTA rankings. She has won four Grand Slams in a row.
Personal History and Legacy
While Naomi Osaka is a shy individual, she is well-known for her activism and has previously aired her views on subjects such as racism, police brutality, and hate crime. In 2020, she withdrew from the Cincinnati Open to protest the police death of Jacob Blake, and during the US Open, she wore masks with the names of African-Americans who had been killed.
She is dating Grammy-nominated American rapper YBN Cordae, whom she met in person for the first time at a Los Angeles Clippers basketball game after speaking on the phone. Cordae, who knew nothing about tennis before meeting Osaka except the names of the two Williams sisters, now regularly attends her matches to cheer her on.
Estimated Net Worth
Naomi Osaka has a net worth of $45 million.
Trivia
Naomi Osaka, who was a dual citizen of Japan and the United States until the age of 22, chose just Japanese citizenship in October 2019 to comply with a Japanese law. She was picked to ignite the Olympic cauldron during the opening ceremony in Tokyo, but since she failed to win a medal, many questioned her qualification to represent the ethnically homogeneous country.