Nervous Naomi Osaka opened the defense of her Australian Open title with a brutal 6-3,
6-3 win in the match against Colombia’s Camila Osorio.
After winning her opening five sets, she fell in the middle of the match.
She was a former number-one world player who was forced to withdraw from an event to
warm up in Melbourne before the tournament after three games, claiming that her “body
had a shock” when she played her first match in over four months.
The Japanese player showed no ill effects defeating her opponent in the 50th position at
Rod Laver Arena, but it was not a perfect match.
“I did fairly well, but I didn’t know much about my opponent,” Osaka said. Osaka took
home victory at Melbourne Park in 2019 and 2021.
“She performed admirably and fought to win every single point. I’m content being here.
It’s a special feeling to be back here.”
In the 13th round, after taking a lengthy break following an insufferable 2021 season,
during which she claimed to have experienced “long episodes depressive episodes,” Osaka
raced into the lead with a 5-0 advantage and seemed to be in complete control.
Then she suddenly lost focus after the determined Osorio was able to hold serve and after
which she defeated the former four-time Grand Slam winner and had her help to bring
herself back into the match at 3-3.
Osaka needed to dig deep to secure two break points to serve the set.
However, he held to the end to make it 31 minutes.
Osorio’s revival was brief-lived, with Osaka winning a decisive break during the 3rd game in
the 2nd set.
Immediately made no mistakes, breaking to secure a second round.
Next, she’ll be playing in either American Madison Brengle or Ukraine’s Dayana Yastremska.
Osaka defeated American Jennifer Brady in last year’s final.
However, she later was forced to withdraw from Wimbledon and the French Open and
Wimbledon over mental health issues.
Her speaking with the media following the matches made the problem worse.
In September, she also made an emotional and premature exit at the US Open.
However, in the run-up to the first Grand Slam of the year, the 24-year-old told reporters
she was committed to putting her struggles over the hump and enjoying herself.
“I simply have to figure out how to be a fan and enjoy it again because that’s for me to
play in the first in the first place,” she said ahead of the event.
