‘Funniest Times of My Life’ – Naomi Osaka Is Surprisingly Upbeat at Miami Open 2022 After a Rough Start to the Year

Naomi Osaka rose to prominence when she beat Serena Williams at the 2018 US Open to win her maiden Major title. Since then, she has added three Grand Slam titles to her trophy cabinet. But more importantly, Osaka has been monumental in bringing forward the issue of mental health in professional athletes. Choosing to stand her ground, she prioritized her mental health and played a limited schedule in 2021.

Naomi Osaka advances to the quarterfinals again in Miami

Noami Osaka breezed past her challenger, Alison Riske in straight sets 6-3, 6-4 in her Round-of-16 clash on Monday at the  Miami Open.

With her dominant win over the American, the former World No.1 is back in the quarterfinals in Miami. She opened up about her journey so far at this year’s Miami Masters in an on-court interview.

“Yeah, I was gonna say it’s really funny for me because last year, I made it to the quarters after Australia, I wasn’t that grateful. You know, I kind of expected to win. And but I’m in the same position this year and I’m so like, this is certainly like one of the funniest times of my life. So, I’m really grateful and I want to say thank you, everyone,” she said in her post match interview.

She will next face Australian Open finalist, Danielle Collins, in the quarterfinals.

DIVE DEEPER: ‘Queen’- Naomi Osaka Reacts to Venus Williams’s Dazzling Look at Academy Awards 2022

Osaka has found her rhythm back

Her experience at the Indian Wells Masters was not the best. Naomi Osaka faced some heckling from someone in the crowd, and that visually affected her in an extremely negative way. She also got upset about the issue and failed to regroup herself in time, eventually crumbling in the second round. But the way she played against Riske today, it seemed like she has moved past the incident, and is aiming for some resurgence.

Watch this story-Will Smith Shows How King Richard Cast Trained Like Serena and Venus Williams

She has also credited her practice sessions with Nick Kyrgios and said that it has helped her bounce back, and get into the rhythm. Can Osaka dig deep at this year’s Miami Open? Only time will tell as it will intriguing to witness how Osaka-Collins battle unfolds in the quarterfinal!