Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka is one of the best tennis players of the current generation. The 24-year-old already has achieved the success people strive all their careers for. Having four Grand Slam titles at such a young age is a remarkable feat. Although her form has not been great lately, we can’t write her off so early in her career.

The four-time Grand Slam champion was lucky enough to have a few of the World’s best athletes guide her in the early stage. While she absolutely adores Serena Williams, Osaka was close to Kobe Bryant as well. Many times, she mentioned Bryant was someone who played the role of a mentor in her life. However, there was very important advice from the basketball legend that Osaka didn’t follow. Here’s what she said about that.

The advice from Kobe Bryant that Osaka didn’t follow

In a recent podcast, Osaka opened up about her career and personal life challenges. Speaking of which, she also mentioned the people who have helped her grow and mature as an athlete. She credited former NBA star Kobe Bryant for providing her the guidance she needed early in her career. However, there was this advice from Kobe she did not follow.

The interviewer quoted Bryant’s advice, saying, “Think of the media and press as nets and you are the lion. So never get distracted. You never see the lion trying to swat away the flies or anything like that.”

Replying to that, Osaka said, “Else maybe, I did the opposite of what he told me to do.”

To which the interviewer said it was a piece of advice, and you did what you felt was better for you.

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Osaka chuckled and said, “That makes me feel better.”

Naomi Osaka is the highest-paid female athlete

Doing the opposite of what her mentor told her to do, it will be fair to say that Osaka made the right choice. Rather than hiding from the limelight, the 24-year-old embraced it and used it for her own cause. The four-time Grand Slam champion was the highest-earning athlete for the second year in a row in the year 2021.

With the sponsorship deals with likes of Nike, Louis Vuitton, Sweetgreen, and Tag Heuer among others leapfrogged her idol, Serena Williams.

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If we look at the figures, Osaka’s earnings from the last year were $2.3 million from tennis and $55 million off the court. Now that she is in a rough phase of her career, it is crucial that she keeps herself focused and regains her form soon. Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka spoke about a piece of advice that American basketball legend Kobe Bryant gave to her, but she didn’t follow.