The 27-year-old Australian former tennis player, Ashleigh Barty had a pretty unusual run on the court. Initially, she had stepped away from the racket sport as a youth and then she came back to triumph at Wimbledon and Australian Open. Then she suddenly retired at the age of 25 when she was at the peak of women’s singles ranking. The wrecking ball on the tennis court was reported as the third richest sportsperson on Forbes’ Highest-Earning Sportswomen list in 2022. Yet, she remained behind Japanese icon, Naomi Osaka. The catch here is that Osaka too remained an outliner among the highest-paid athletes.

During her 12 tenure as a pro tennis player, she had met Osaka only 4 times. Ash Barty has won 3 Grand Slam titles in her career whereas Naomi managed to clinch 4 so far. But even in the 3 years of being the number 1 in the rankings, they had played each other only once. Even though they level each other at H2H by 2-2, there’s an astonishing $50 million difference between them which highlights the harsh reality of modern-day tennis. Let’s find out.

The staggering numbers which differentiate Naomi Osaka and Ash Barty

Both of them have been the epitome of dominance on the court in their prime. But, now one has already taken retirement from the sport while the other is eyeing a comeback to the highest form of the game next year. Ash Barty has always owned her career path and avoided unnecessary attention throughout her career. Perhaps this might be a reason for these figures.

Ash Barty’s endorsement earnings were pretty low compared to the 4-time Grand Slam winner. She has won two Grand Slam titles in the last 10 months of her career. As per Sportico, her estimated prize money of close to $5.1 M was more than double her estimated off-court earnings of around $2.5 M. But when switching to modern-day tennis, the ratio was a considerable inversion from Japanese icon, Naomi Osaka. Osaka had earned just $1.2 M as prize money. Whereas she managed a staggering estimated amount of $52 M in endorsements. This gap shows us how modern-day tennis has changed its course with time.

Now, Osaka is on the verge of making a comeback in 2024. Can she make it even more fruitful in what supposedly be her second stint at her beloved sport?

Osaka is set to return at the ‘Land Down Under’

Naomi Osaka last played a WTA tournament at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo in late September 2022 and had a daughter, Shai, in July this year. Now, the former number 1 is set to make a return at the biggest stage. Osaka will make a comeback at the Brisbane International which is set to commence on December 31. This tournament would serve as a good preparatory camp for the 26YO ahead of the major event in Melbourne Park.

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The Australian Open is scheduled from January 14 to January 28. The two-time Australian Open champ has to apply for a ‘Special Ranking’ to ensure a direct entry into the women’s singles main draw. Special Ranking is a provision for players who are on the verge of making a comeback after a prolonged illness, injury layoff, or even maternity leave cases. Can the Japanese capitalize on this opportunity and bring home her 5th major title from Australia?

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