"When I was her age, I would find myself getting frustrated and I would show it" - Naomi Osaka on Coco Gauff
Naomi Osaka returned to competitive action on Tuesday following her two-month injury layoff which forced her to miss the entire grasscourt swing. In her first-round match at the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic in San Jose, the former World No. 1 defeated Qinwen Zheng in three sets to set up a showdown with Coco Gauff in the Round of 16.
Even though the American is merely 18 at present, she seems to have been around for almost half a decade. And Osaka was full of praise for the teenager ahead of their clash.
Gauff might be technically superior to any player of her age, but it is her mentality that impresses the Japanese the most. Ahead of their much-awaited clash, she highlighted how the teenager is able to stay calm and neutral the entire time, as opposed to how frustrated Osaka would get when she was of her age.
“When I was her age, I would find myself getting frustrated and I would show it,” Osaka said. “So I just think it’s really cool how she’s able to stay really neutral all the time."
With the 24-year-old nursing her Achilles, Gauff kept proactively racking up wins over the same period. She made the final at Roland Garros, semifinals at the Berlin Grass Court Championships and the third round at Wimbledon. Additionally, she reached the women's doubles final in Paris and the mixed doubles semifinals at Wimbledon.
Osaka pointed out the teenager's improvement curve. She believes it's only a matter of time before Gauff wins her first Grand Slam.
“She’s improving every year so I think there’s a lot that she’s learning and it’s only a matter of time before she gets a Slam," she noted.
“I didn’t really care if I won today, I just wanted to have fun" - Naomi Osaka on her return to the tour
Besides her take on her next opponent, Naomi Osaka also expressed happiness over her return to the court in San Jose. A winner of four Grand Slams, the 24-year-old revealed that she didn't care about winning on Tuesday and that she only wanted to have fun playing.
“I didn’t really care if I won today,” Osaka said. “I just wanted to have fun. I’m literally just here to have a good time.”
@naomiosaka gets the win in a tricky opening match against Zheng, 6-4, 3-6, 6-1!Level 🆙
🇯🇵 @naomiosaka gets the win in a tricky opening match against Zheng, 6-4, 3-6, 6-1!
#MubadalaSVC https://t.co/2H9pTf6ibo
The match was all the more special for the Japanese since she had her father back as her coach after a long time. Osaka explained that her dad, Leonard Francois, has a unique coaching style, where he says weird random stuff which makes her laugh.
“He really doesn’t say much,” she said. “The times that he does say stuff, it’s really weird, random stuff that kind of makes me laugh so I think it’s a good thing.”
The former World No. 1 added that it wasn't just her dad that made her feel home, but that the venue played its role as well. Naomi Osaka revealed that she has visited San Jose many times and has friends there with whom she has trained in the past.
“For me it feels like a home because I’ve visited here so many times because my friends live here,” she said. “I’ve trained with them out here. It definitely feels better to play a match in a place that you’re quite familiar with.”