Osaka unsure what to expect ahead of US Open title bid

In the two years since Naomi Osaka won her second US Open title, trying to second-guess her performances has become a thankless task.

Will it be the Osaka who romped to victory again in the Australian Open in 2021, or the Osaka who has not been past the third round in four attempts since?

Osaka’s mental health issues have been well-documented and will continue to be a work in progress. And as she prepares to begin her quest for a fifth Grand Slam title, even she is not sure how she’s going to feel or do over the next two weeks.

“I don’t know, I feel like I would have lied a day ago or so and said that I was really relaxed,” she told reporters at the US Open on Saturday. “But actually, when I practiced today I felt very anxious. I think it’s because I really want to do well, because I feel I haven’t been doing well lately.”

Disappointing form in 2022

Since she reached the final in Miami in March, Osaka has played just five events and won two matches. She lost in the first round at Roland-Garros, skipped Wimbledon – having said that the absence of ranking points was a factor – and then this summer, won just one match in three events.

Returning to the scene of some of her greatest triumphs is an inspiration for her, though, and she says she’s trying to be kinder to herself as she tries to negotiate the hurdles, on and off the court, that a Grand Slam brings.

“I don’t know, it’s tough,” she said. “Of course, you don’t want to lose in the first round of a slam. I feel like I always do pretty well here. It’s kind of, like, taking the pressure off of myself, but it (pressure) is always going to be there.

“I think the opponent I’m going to play (19th seed Danielle Collins) is also really tough, so it adds a little bit extra. I’m just trying to enjoy the time that I have here.”

Osaka ended her three-year coaching relationship with Wim Fissette in July and will be aided by her father in New York. She says she’s never had so many niggling injuries as in 2022 and puts some of it down to growing pains.

But the Japanese is also a class act and if she can get her game in order and find the balance she needs off the court, then she’ll be a threat again.

“Honestly, my first practice here I thought I played way better than I did in Cincinnati,” she said, when asked how the courts at Flushing Meadows are playing. “So whatever’s happening on the courts here works out better for me.

“I also think I played a lot more matches on these courts than in Cincinnati, so it’s good for me. I’ve reached the stage where I’m at the slam now, this is my favourite slam…I just think I’m trying to enjoy the moment a lot.”

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