In a second-round match in Madrid that ended at 2:30 a.m. Beijing time yesterday, Naomi Osaka lost 3-6 1-6 to Spain's 47th-placed Spanish player Tomo. This is Naomi Osaka's two-game defeat at clay against Tomo, missing out on the Round of 16 in Madrid. For Tomo, it was her first round of 16 since her 10th appearance in Madrid and the only Spanish player left in the women's singles draw.
Naomi Osaka didn't look too upset after the defeat, saying in her post-match press conference that she was looking forward to the rest of the season and revealing for the first time that she would play in mixed doubles at Wimbledon this year.
During the game, Naomi Osaka tried a new technique of volleying, which has rarely appeared in the past. Asked by reporters about the change in the style of the game, Naomi Osaka revealed that she was working hard to improve her pre-net skills because she had promised to compete in mixed doubles at Wimbledon this year.
Naomi Osaka stressed that she doesn't want to drag her partner down in mixed doubles matches, so she needs to practice her pre-net skills. When asked who her Wimbledon mixed doubles partner was, Naomi Osaka said she didn't want to reveal his identity for the time being.
On the WTA website, Naomi Osaka has only played in 14 doubles matches so far, four of which were at ITF events before 2014. Her earliest doubles match was in 2012 against her sister Mari Osaka, and her most recent doubles match was at the 2017 Tokyo Open, where her sister lost in the first round to a Japanese and Czech cross-country duo.
In addition, Naomi Osaka also competed in the women's doubles competition at Wimbledon in 2017, when she was partnered by China's Jinhua Zhang Shuai, who lost 3-6 3-6 to France's Melatinovic and Garcia in the first round.
An interesting phenomenon is that Naomi Osaka never seems to have competed in mixed doubles tournaments on the Tour or in grand slams. If she does sign up for mixed doubles this year, it may be the first time in her career that she has competed in this genre.
Why did Naomi Osaka compete in mixed doubles at Wimbledon on a whim?
This is mainly because she does not expect much from Wimbledon's singles results, and it is expected that she will have a hard time reaching the round of 16 in singles. We all know that Naomi Osaka's best type of venue is hard courts, with her first WTA1000 title and four Grand Slam titles all coming from hard courts. Her grass and clay results have always been less than ideal, with only four Wimbledon appearances so far, a round in 2015 and 2019, and a third round in 2017 and 2018. Since you don't have any expectations for Wimbledon singles results, it is better to simply let go of your hands and feet to play mixed doubles at Wimbledon and really enjoy the fun of the game.
So, who will Naomi Osaka's mixed doubles partner be?
The first to be excluded are Russian and Belarusian players, who have been banned from playing at this year's Wimbledon.
The second exclusion is the singles top players, who are usually less likely to choose a double-line battle in a Grand Slam, and their focus is definitely on the singles side, mainly because doubles not only distracts the concentration, but also interferes with the singles schedule and affects the correct accumulation of singles ball feelings.
After excluding the above two types of players, I guess naomi Osaka's mixed doubles partner is likely to be Kyrgios. My guess is based on the following four reasons:
First, Kyrgios does not fall into both categories of players, and his recent doubles performances are really good. So far this year, Kyrgios's men's doubles record is 10 wins and 3 losses, winning six consecutive games at the Australian Open to win the men's doubles title, reaching the doubles semifinals in Miami, and his doubles prize money has reached $322,000 this year, accounting for 44% of his total singles and doubles prize money.
Second, Kyrgios has not had a good singles performance at Wimbledon in recent years. His 2021 and 2018 Wimbledon singles stopped in the third round, and this result is somewhat similar to Naomi Osaka, so reporting the mixed doubles right is a play.
Third, Kyrgios played mixed doubles with Wimbledon partner Dawei last year. Any event needs to create a topic, attract popularity and drive the box office, and last year's mixed doubles match between Kyrgios and Dawei successfully attracted a large number of fans. In 2019, Murray and Serena were also paired at Wimbledon's mixed doubles, which attracted members of the British royal family to watch.
Fourth, and most importantly, Naomi Osaka and Kyrgios had exchanged ideas about fighting psychological depression at the beginning of the year, which can be described as "pity for the same disease." In Indian Wells in March, Naomi Osaka also watched Kyrgios train and asked him how to improve his serve.
Based on the above analysis, I think Naomi Osaka's mixed doubles partner at Wimbledon this year is likely to be Kyrgios.
So, who do you think Naomi Osaka will partner with? Feel free to leave your opinion in the comments section. (Source: Tennis House Author: Yun Cirrus Yunshu)