Naomi Osaka confirms her baby’s due date and reveals Grand Slam and Olympic goals
Naomi Osaka has made it clear that she wants to return to competitive tennis after giving birth to her first child and she is setting herself some big targets, not just for 2024 but also for the remainder of her career.
The former world No 1 announced in January this year that she would skip the 2023 tennis season as she is expecting her first child with rapper boyfriend Cordae.
However, she made it clear during her pregnancy announcement that she planned on returning to action in 2024 and she is determined to keep her word.
“2023 will be a year that’ll be full of lessons for me and I hope I’ll see you guys in the start of the next one cause I’ll be at Aus 2024,” the four-time Grand Slam winner said on social media.
During an interview with former Japanese tennis player and journalist Shuzo Matsuoka, Osaka again expressed her determination about returning to the WTA Tour in January 2024 as she believes she will have plenty of time to get ready after giving birth.
“I’m definitely going to perform well and be a better player than I have been last year. For me, my results just made me want to try harder and be the best that I can be. I’ll be competing in Australia next year.”
When asked if it is not too soon, she replied: “The baby is due in June or July, so I have August, September, October, November and December. I have almost six months.”
— NaomiOsaka大坂なおみ (@naomiosaka) March 21, 2023
Osaka has fallen to No 314 in the WTA Rankings due to her absence from the Tour, but she will be the first to admit that she struggled for form before she fell pregnant.
Her last title came at the 2021 Australian Open and she failed to reach the second week of any of the Grand Slams she has played since then.
The 25-year-old, though, is aiming for bigger and better things one she returns to the Tour.
Asked how many Grand Slams she wants to win, Osaka replied without hesitation: “Eight.”
When Matsuoka asked if she meant eight more in addition to the four she currently has, the Japanese star shook her head in acknowledgement.
As for another goal was to win gold at next year’s Pairs Olympics, she said: “French Olympic gold. I want to try to win the Olympics next year.
She added: “It makes me very excited to return to the sport….It’s something that’s going to make me very happy.”
READ MORE: Who is Naomi Osaka’s boyfriend Cordae?
