With her remarkable accolades on the women’s tour, Naomi Osaka has etched her position as one of the household figures. In addition to clinching four Grand Slam titles, the Japanese tennis player has also reached the world No. 1 ranking in singles. But when it comes to the doubles category, the WTA superstar lacks experience, as she has only played 16 matches so far, and that is about to change.

After almost seven seasons, the 4-time singles Grand Slam champion will make her first doubles appearance alongside her Tunisian colleague, Ons Jabeur. Though she lacks doubles experience, Osaka recently opened up about being optimistic about playing with ‘perfect partner’ Jabeur at the ongoing Abu Dhabi Open.

Naomi Osaka looks all geared up to play her first doubles match after seven seasons

The WTA 500-level tournament in Abu Dhabi is underway, and the Japanese tennis player will be competing in both the singles and doubles categories. As she is teamed up with Ons Jabeur, the duo will square off against the Chinese team of Zheng Saisai and Wang Xinyu in the first-round match. Ahead of her first doubles appearance since 2017, Naomi Osaka revealed that she is a “mixture of excited and very nervous” while also feeling “very sorry” for her Tunisian partner.

In an interview with The National, the former world No. 1 player also said, “I obviously don’t play doubles at all. Just because it’s hard for me to understand it and I’m the type of person that I don’t really like doing something if I’m not good at it.” As she has not played a doubles match for seven seasons, Osaka said that she will need to practice her serves, returns, and the net game. She added, “I also think she would be the perfect partner for me because I think she would make it very fun. I’m really looking forward to it.”

Though she has parted ways with the Japanese star’s agency ‘Evolve,’ Jabeur still gets along well with Osaka, as they will be joining forces on the court at the Abu Dhabi Open. While praising her 29-year-old  colleague as someone who is ‘very easy’ to root for, the four-time singles Grand Slam champion revealed that she is ‘so happy’ for Jabeur for all that she has accomplished on the women’s circuit. Osaka stated, “For me Ons is the type of person that I always like … I’m so happy for her with everything that she’s achieved and everything that she’s done.”

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What do you think of the WTA players Osaka and Jabeur teaming up for the Abu Dhabi Open? Let us know in the comments section.

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