Naomi Osaka is stepping into the spotlight again—not for her powerful serves or impeccable forehands, but for her less-than-pleasant experience at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) tennis training facility. Pre-season preparations are in full swing for the Japanese star, but one thing has her throwing up her hands: the parking system! Yes, you heard that right. Osaka has voiced her frustration with the parking setup, which seems to be adding unnecessary stress to her training routine.

The Japanese tennis sensation witnessed a roller coaster of a season this year. From early exits to surprising defeats, Osaka’s year did not go as planned. When she finally looked in a comfortable position at the China Open, a back injury marred her campaign forcing her to end her season early. But now, even when she is preparing for her upcoming season, it seems that her practice sessions are not free from challenges either and UCLA is witnessing immense backlash from the player. 

Taking to her Instagram story on Wednesday, Osaka shared pictures of two parking tickets that had been handed over to her. In the picture, it can be seen that Osaka is unable to use the Park Machine and the app and put a note about the same on her car. But it did not help the player who ended up gaining the parking tickets again. Captioning the story, Osaka expressed her disappointment and wrote, “@ucla heyyy so your parking machines don’t work and neither does ParkMobile. Idk what you expect me to do but I think giving someone two tickets cause your machines don’t work is a little wrong.” She continued to vent her frustration in yet another post. 

Expressing her surprise over the ignorance on the note she left, Osaka wrote, “And the thing that kills me is that whoever wrote the ticket saw my note, pushed it to the side and wrote back to back tickets anyways 💀  I’m so upset 😫” Interestingly, this is not the first time when Osaka has faced such a problem with the parking system at UCLA’s tennis facility. 

Taking to Threads on November 25, Naomi Osaka revealed the challenge she faced while parking her car. “Why does UCLA make it impossible to pay for parking on their parking lots??? It’s almost like you want to give me a ticket even though I’m trying to pay,” she wrote. However, there has been no response from UCLA over the matter yet. 

The Japanese star, however, is known for her resilience and it will be interesting to see how she overcomes the bizarre challenge she is facing. Meanwhile, she is aiming to return to the courts in a dominant form and has her aspirations clear for the next year. 

Naomi Osaka has her priorities set for the next season

Naomi Osaka faced an inconsistent year with surprising setbacks knocking her over time and again. However, she is gearing up to return to the courts in a dominant form, win more accolades, spend more time playing tournaments, and overcome her woes, the beginning of which she wishes to mark at the ASB Classic in Auckland.

Speaking about her return to Auckland, Osaka said, “I am looking forward to just embracing the nature of Auckland and of course, playing in a tournament that I have not played in for a long time. I am excited to return to Auckland for the ASB Classic 2025.” However, her aspirations are far beyond just returning to the tournament. 

“My goal now, I think to be seeded in Australia. I would really love that. Yeah, just being seeded. But not putting too much pressure on myself. I’m just trying to take it day by day.” As the off-season unfolds, it would be interesting to see how Osaka overcomes the added burden and prepare to fulfil her desires for the next year.