New mother Osaka tames nerves for winning return in Brisbane
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[January 02, 2024]
BRISBANE (Reuters) -Four-times Grand Slam champion Naomi
Osaka felt the nerves but looked solid on her return to elite tennis
after 15 months out as she got past Germany's Tamara Korpatsch 6-3
7-6(9) in the first round of the Brisbane International on Monday.
The 26-year-old from Japan last competed on tour at the Pan Pacific
Open in Tokyo in September 2022 and had her first child, daughter
Shai, in July before stepping up her preparations for the Jan. 14-28
Australian Open.
Osaka displayed no signs of rust to break Korpatsch to love in her
first game back and the former world number one turned up the heat
again towards the end of the opening set to close it out in 38
minutes with a sizzling forehand winner.
Twice Melbourne Park champion Osaka dropped serve for a second time
late in the next set to squander her advantage but continued her
clean ball-striking in the fiercely contested tiebreak to secure the
victory.
"I was super nervous playing the entire time but I was really
excited to be out here. It feels really good to be back," Osaka said
after signing autographs and taking pictures with supporters
courtside.
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"I feel like the last couple of years that I played before I had my
daughter, I didn't return as much love as I was given. So I really
feel like that's what I want to do in this chapter."
Osaka previously had long spells out of the game since her second
triumph at Melbourne Park, taking a break to prioritize her mental
health after withdrawing from the 2021 French Open and another after
the U.S. Open the same year.
She said it was a delight to feel the love from fans after her
latest comeback.
"I just really appreciate people coming out and cheering for me,
because I feel there was a time that I was just a little kid trying
to watch my role models play," Osaka added.
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Tennis - U.S. Open - Flushing Meadows, New York, United States -
August 30, 2022 Japan's Naomi Osaka during her first round match
against Danielle Collins of the U.S. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File
Photo
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"So it feels really surreal sometimes to be playing
on these courts."
Up next is former world number one Karolina Pliskova, who received a
bye into the second round.
"I've played her a couple of times," Osaka told reporters later.
"She's such a tough opponent... very different from the match I
played just now. Very interested to see what happens."
In the men's draw, Roman Safiullin stunned third seed Ben Shelton
6-3 6-7(5) 6-3 under the roof at Pat Rafter Arena but persistent
rain halted play on the outside courts and forced several matches to
be cancelled.
Top seed Holger Rune survived a scare to beat Max Purcell 4-6 6-4
6-2 while former world number one Andy Murray went down 4-6 7-5 6-2
to second seed Grigor Dimitrov.
Rafa Nadal makes his singles comeback on Tuesday when he faces
qualifier Dominic Thiem following Sunday's doubles defeat after
nearly a year out injured.
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru;Editing by Kim Coghill
and Neil Fullick)
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