With a title running both the US and Australian Open, Naomi Osaka has risen to be among the most visible athletes not only in tennis but also in every sport. However, the tennis player who has quickly captured the hearts of the Australian Open admits that she has had difficulties dealing with the immense success that she has recently acquired. She recently revealed that she was more comfortable when people didn’t pay attention to her. But this can be understood since she was not anywhere near the ranking the previous year
Having lived in the United States for the most part of her life, from the age of three, to be precise, it comes as no surprise to her when people are shocked to find out that she is actually Japanese. This doubt is fueled by the fact that she does not know Japanese.
Who is Naomi Osaka?
Naomi Osaka is a Japanese tennis player born in Osaka, Japan 21 years ago. Naomi`s mother is Japanese while her father is Haitian. Naomi who currently lives in Florida has dual citizenship of both America and Japan. Even though she has spent most of her life in the US, Osaka represents Japan since her father registered her with the Japan Tennis Association at the beginning of her career.
Currently, Osaka is the Australian Open and the US Open champion in Women’s singles and the No. 1 tennis player in the ranking done by Women’s Tennis Association. She achieved the top spot in January 2019.
Her biggest break
Osaka’s biggest break happened in September 2013 when she was 16 years old. This is when she became pro. Three years later, she qualified for her very first Grand Slam at the Australian Open.
Some of her biggest wins include her win against Angelique Kerber from Germany who is the 2019 winner of Wimbledon as well as her 2017 win against Venus Williams who she defeated at the Hong Kong Open. This past season, Osaka managed to beat both Serena Williams, at the Miami Open, and Maria Sharapova at Indian Wells. In addition, just like Venus Williams and Serena Williams, Osaka has an older sister, Mari, whom she occasionally plays doubles with.
Ever since the success of Serena and Venus, Osaka became the first woman to win back to back majors since 2015 and she also beat Serena Williams at the US Open finals last year. Osaka has quickly become a major star in Japan and her popularity has extended to sites like poker online Indonesia. Her performance at the Australian Open has earned her extensive media coverage as she has since been the daily topic of the daily news coverage in Japan.
Endorsements
Osaka’s quirky sense of humor has propelled her fame further and earned her a couple of endorsements for major brands like Adidas, Nissan, and Yonex. Osaka also enjoys a huge online presence since her fans can be found on almost every site like poker online Indonesia.
Conclusion
Osaka’s immense popularity is fueled by the fact that she is the first person of Japanese nationality to win at the US Open and the Grand Slam singles title. With the 2020 Tokyo Olympics just around the corner, Osaka’s success could not come at a better time as she stands a chance to be the face of the Games.