Naomi Osaka is back on the court after struggling with an Achilles injury. So far, the former world no.1 has had a subpar run on the tour in 2022. She is now gearing up for the hard-court season by playing at the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic in San Jose. The tournament has a special place in her professional career, as she met her idol, Serena Williams, for the first time here.

The player made her debut here in 2014 at the age of 16 and she was more than excited to see her role model in real life. The official account of the tournament uploaded a video from 2014 when she met Williams for the first time.

Naomi Osaka reminisces about meeting Serena Williams

The memory of meeting her idol, Serena Williams, for the first time is as fresh as yesterday for Osaka. The player shared the video of the tour with the tweet, “hahah I remember thinking that was the best day of my life”.

The encounter happened during the Silicon Valley Classic tour in 2014. Naomi Osaka had come out victorious in the first-round match by defeating Sam Stosur, who was in the Top 20 of the WTA ranking.

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After cementing herself as one of the top players, Naomi Osaka met Serena Williams four times on the tour. Their first encounter was in the Miami Open in 2018, where the Japanese player came out victorious.

She again defeated the 23-time grand slam champion in the controversial final of the US Open in 2018. One encounter at Toronto was in favor of Williams. However, Osaka reigned over the player once again at the semi-finals of the Australian Open in 2021.

How are Osaka and Williams gearing up for the US Open?

The Japanese player is set to make her return to the tour at San Jose after missing the Wimbledon Championships because of her Achilles injury. Osaka has recovered from her injury and is now gearing up for the hard-court season. The player has won the US Open twice, so will be optimistic about her run on the hard courts at Flushing Meadows.

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On the other hand, Serena Williams has won the US Open six times. Besides that, she is participating in the Rogers Cup. Following that, she will participate in the Cincinnati Masters, which she has won twice before.