Osaka gets ’emotional’ talking about Zhang: “When I got on tour, she adopted me in a way”

Naomi Osaka and Zhang Shuai’s head-to-head tally stands at 3-3

October 5, 2018 - Naomi Osaka of Japan & Shuai Zhang of China at the net after their quarter-final match at the 2018 China Open WTA Premier Mandatory tennis tournament.

Zhang and Osaka hug each other (Zuma / Panoramic)

October 2, 2024

Chinese Zhang Shuai is on a roll in Beijing, having reached the quarter-finals of China Open as the world No 595, and no one seems happier for her than the four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka.

Osaka too made an inspired run in Beijing, but, was forced to quit midway through her Round-of-16 match against American Coco Gauff on Tuesday (6-3, 4-6). It later emerged through the former world No 1’s Instagram that a back injury led to her withdrawal.

Meanwhile, Zhang is on her way to creating more history as she takes on Spain’s Paula Badosa. She’s only the fourth woman, after Kim Clijsters, Sloane Stephens, and Osaka, to reach the quarter-finals of a WTA 1000 tournament while ranked outside the Top 500.

4 – Shuai Zhang (#595) is the fourth player ranked outside the WTA’s top 500 to reach a WTA-1000 quarter-final after Kim Clijsters (Cincinnati 2009), Sloane Stephens (Toronto 2017) and Naomi Osaka (Doha 2024). Wow. #ChinaOpen | @ChinaOpen @WTA @WTA_insider pic.twitter.com/gRIfFkB4km
— OptaAce (@OptaAce) October 1, 2024

By the time Osaka turned pro in 2013, Zhang had spent 10 years on the WTA Tour. And as per Osaka, the Chinese apparently took the Japanese under her wings when she began competing:

“I feel like when I got on tour, she adopted me in a way,” Osaka told reporters in Beijing. “She’s been incredibly nice to me this entire time I’ve been on tour. I have an extremely big soft spot for her.”

Zhang held an unwanted record of 0-14 in Grand Slam main draw matches until making the quarter-finals at the Australian Open in 2016. She repeated the same at Wimbledon three years later and climbed to the 22nd spot in the WTA rankings in January 2023.

Reflecting on her bond with Zhang further, Osaka added:

“It’s hard for me not to be emotional when I see her doing well because I know her struggles and we’ve kind of struggled together, too. I love her a lot. I think she has such a warm heart.”

It’s all square between Naomi Osaka and Zhang Shuai in the head-to-head. The duo have played against each other six times, sharing three wins each.