Screenshot of foreign media reports
On January 19, Beijing time, according to Tennis World, WTA former world number one and "female King Kong" Martina Navratilova compared Japanese actress Naomi Osaka and American star Serena Williams (Serena Williams) because she believed that the Japanese did not need too many games to find her rhythm.
Naomi Osaka, 24, last competed at the 2021 US Open. After a 4-month break, the Japanese girl made a comeback in Melbourne to compete in the WTA Melbourne station. However, before the semi-finals, she withdrew due to injury because she did not want to take any risks before the Australian Open.
Naomi Osaka at the Australian Open
"I think Osaka (Naomi) is a bit like Serena (Serena)." Nafratilova said, "She's already playing important games and she doesn't need that much, as long as she stays healthy and gets that confidence in order to play well." ”
"And a faster venue will help her."
Of course, "Female Kong" also talked about Naomi Osaka's lack of competition practice.
After last year's French Open, The Japanese girl has played in just 3 events for the rest of the season in 2021.
"You can be in the best position in your life, but in the game you always have to stretch a little bit more for the sake of hitting the ball, and you know, the emotional energy also makes the body recover less well." Navratilova said.
"So, you have to race in order to gain confidence, which is more important for the body than the mind."
Naomi Osaka is currently competing in the Australian Open women's singles as the No. 13 seed. In the first two rounds, she swept Colombia's Serrano and American Brungel 6-3, 6-0, 6-0, 6-4 respectively.