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Osaka, who last played competitively when she lost to Leylah
Fernandez in the third round of the U.S. Open in September,
displayed plenty of her trademark power but often lacked
accuracy at the Australian Open warm-up event.
The Japanese player struggled with her first serve while
committing 57 unforced errors, including eight double faults, as
she eventually saw off the former world number 11.
"I feel like I probably made a lot of unforced errors today but
I kind of expected that because it is the first match," said
Osaka. "I was really nervous so I'm just glad that I was able to
hold my serve on the last game."
The match was the first since Osaka announced she was taking an
indefinite break from tennis following her loss to Fernandez at
Flushing Meadows.
That decision brought an end to a season that had also seen her
withdraw from the French Open citing mental health issues and
miss Wimbledon during a mid-season hiatus.
Playing on the same Rod Laver Arena court where she has won two
Australian Open titles, the former world number one looked
relaxed in the opening set in front of a small crowd.
"I really love playing here," said Osaka. "I love New York, but
this might be my favourite Slam so it feels really good to
always be back here. It feels really nice to play in front of
people."
The 24-year-old squandered three break points in the fifth game
but made amends two games later to take the opener.
After an early break in the second set, Osaka looked to be
heading for a comfortable win but the loss of four consecutive
games saw Cornet pull level.
Osaka, who is ranked number 13 in the world, regained her poise
early in the third set, winning the first three games before
closing out the match.
In the men's ATP 250 event at the same venue, former world
number one Andy Murray suffered a setback in his preparation for
the Australian Open as Argentine Facundo Bagnis overcame the
Briton 6-3 5-7 6-3 in the round of 32.
"To beat him is amazing, I'm really happy. I enjoyed every point
in the match," world number 76 Bagnis said.
Five-times Australian Open finalist Murray, down at 134th in the
world rankings after layoffs due to hip surgery, has accepted a
wild card to the main draw of the year's first major, which
begins on Jan. 17.
(Reporting by Michael Church in Hong Kong; additional reporting
by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
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