"I felt like I was fighting for my life; I was playing against her, I was playing against the wind" - Naomi Osaka after 1R win over Stephens in Indian Wells

Naomi Osaka won the Indian Wells title in 2018

Naomi Osaka kickstarted her campaign at the 2022 BNP Paribas Open with a thrilling 3-6, 6-1, 6-2 victory over fellow US Open champion Sloane Stephens on Thursday. After Stephens bagged an early break for a 2-0 lead in the decider, Osaka reeled off six straight games to clinch her first win at Indian Wells in three years.

The Japanese, however, admitted how her first-round victory required her to put in twice the effort. In her post-match presser, Naomi Osaka revealed that she was "fighting for her life" amidst the extreme wind conditions during her match. She said she had to exert immense willpower and was proud of how she prevailed through the unfavorable match conditions.

"I haven’t played in a wind like that for a while, so this was very new to me,” said Osaka. “I felt like I was fighting for my life. I was playing against her; I was playing against the wind. It was crazy. I just kept thinking she was going through the same circumstances as me, so I just had to will myself to try as hard as I could. I’m really proud with how I handled it."

The 24-year-old, who had lost both of her previous meetings with Sloane Stephens, went on to heap praise upon the American. She emphasized that the match was a "good test" for her and expressed her hopes of squaring off against Stephens again in more suitable conditions in the future.

"Sloane [Stephens] is such a champion,” the 24-year-old said. “Hopefully, next time we play will be in more ideal conditions. But it was great to be out here again. That was a really good test for me."

yay 😁 https://t.co/Ecb0t5ioRx

The four-time Grand Slam champion further talked about the need to include more game time in her schedule. After her third-round loss at the 2021 US Open, Naomi Osaka disclosed that winning didn't make her "happy" anymore and kept away from the tour for the remainder of the season.

Osaka, who is in action this week for the first time since her third-round loss at the Australian Open in January, admitted that she must play more matches and avoid taking long breaks frequently.

"I keep taking these long breaks,” the World No. 78 said. “I do need to play a lot more matches and I do need to give myself the opportunity to get more into the swing of things."

"I feel like I’m at peace with myself" - Naomi Osaka

Butta says hi 🎾🐶💕 https://t.co/M4pLPtHV0E

In her pre-tournament interview, Naomi Osaka articulated her thoughts ahead of her campaign at Indian Wells. She revealed that she is "at peace" with herself, which in turn has helped her harbor positive feelings. She further expressed gratitude to her fans for their support.

"Honestly, I feel like I’m at peace with myself, which I think is a really good feeling to have as a person," the 24-year-old said. "I’m like really grateful [for the fans’ support]. It really meant a lot to me."

The former World No. 1 will take on Veronika Kudermetova in the second round of the 2022 BNP Paribas Open.

Returning to #IndianWells with a win 💪

🇯🇵 @naomiosaka gets a victory over Stephens to move into the second round! https://t.co/lS9FBgyhiI