PARIS — PARIS (AP) — Naomi Osaka smiled as she spoke to reporters after a 7-5, 6-3 first-round loss to Angelique Kerber at the Paris Olympics on Saturday night, disappointed in the result but hopeful she eventually will return to being the once-dominant player who earned four Grand Slam titles and reached No. 1 in the rankings.
“I guess I need to learn how to win again. Maybe that’s something I forgot how to do,” Osaka said. “Maybe I have to keep playing matches against really good players to relearn that.”
She was hoping for a better showing than she had at the Tokyo Olympics three years ago in her native Japan. She was supposed to be one of the big stars and received the honor of lighting the cauldron at the opening ceremony.
But Osaka lost in the third round there and said she felt a burden to perform well in front of her home fans. She was born in Japan to a Japanese mother and Haitian father, and the family moved to the United States when Osaka was 3.
“I felt more pressure in Tokyo,” the 26-year-old Osaka said. “I honestly felt like I could have done better today.”
She turned her left leg awkwardly at 4-3 in the second set and said she was given medication to help. But Osaka didn’t win another game against Kerber.
Asked how her leg was feeling afterward, Osaka said: “I don’t know, because I took a painkiller, so when it wears off, I’ll let you know. It felt like I hyperextended (it) a little bit. I felt a pinch while I was playing, but I hope I’m still pretty young, so maybe it won’t be that bad.”
Kerber, a silver medalist in 2016 at Rio de Janeiro, has said she will retire after competing for Germany at these Summer Games.
“To win a match like this against Naomi, who is such a great champion — that means a lot, especially because it’s my last tournament. It shows me that I can still beat the top players,” Kerber said. “I just tried to enjoy every moment. I’m just looking forward to having another dance.”
Osaka rose to the top of tennis several years ago, winning two championships apiece at the U.S. Open and Australian Open from 2018 to 2021 and becoming the highest-paid female athlete in any sport.
It was at the 2021 French Open — contested at the same site as the Paris Olympics tennis competition — that Osaka first revealed she had been dealing with anxiety and depression, and began to take a series of mental health breaks. She was among the first prominent athletes to speak publicly about those topics and, along with other Olympians Simone Biles and Michael Phelps, helped make them a part of the national conversation.
Osaka then left the tour while she was pregnant; her daughter was born in July 2023. She returned to Grand Slam action at the Australian Open this January and appeared to be back to her best tennis during the French Open a few months later, when she pushed eventual champion Iga Swiatek to three sets and held a match point.
Clay, though, has never been Osaka’s best surface, mainly because it dulls her best shots — her serve and forehand, lessening the way they affect opponents.
“I feel like my serve could have been a lot better. When I was practicing, I felt the same way,” Osaka said. “But I feel like that’s never an excuse to lose.”
Against Kerber, Osaka’s strokes were off the mark. She finished with 30 unforced errors, nearly three times as many as Kerber’s 11. And Osaka only broke Kerber once while dropping four of her own service games.
The 36-year-old Kerber is not exactly a huge fan of clay, either: It’s the only major tournament she didn’t win.
Kerber took home trophies from the Australian Open and U.S. Open in 2016, and Wimbledon in 2018, defeating Serena Williams in two of those finals. Kerber never has been past the quarterfinals in Paris.
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games
In a surprising turn of events at the Paris Olympics, Naomi Osaka, the world-renowned tennis player and four-time Grand Slam champion, was defeated by Angelique Kerber in the opening round of the tournament. The match, which took place on the iconic clay courts of Roland Garros, ended with a score of 6-4, 6-2 in favor of Kerber.
Osaka, who is currently ranked No. 2 in the world, was considered one of the favorites to win the gold medal in women’s singles tennis at the Olympics. However, Kerber, a former world No. 1 and three-time Grand Slam champion herself, proved to be a formidable opponent on the day.
The match started off competitively, with both players showcasing their powerful groundstrokes and precise shot-making. However, it was Kerber who managed to break Osaka’s serve early in the first set, giving her a crucial advantage. Despite Osaka’s best efforts to mount a comeback, Kerber’s consistent play and aggressive tactics ultimately proved to be too much for the Japanese star to handle.
After the match, Osaka expressed her disappointment at the result but also praised Kerber for her performance on the court. She acknowledged that she had not been at her best during the match and vowed to learn from the experience and come back stronger in future tournaments.
On the other hand, Kerber was understandably thrilled with her victory over such a formidable opponent. She credited her preparation and focus for the win and expressed her excitement at the prospect of competing in the later rounds of the tournament.
The defeat of Osaka by Kerber serves as a reminder of the unpredictable nature of sports and the importance of staying focused and mentally strong in high-pressure situations. It also highlights the depth of talent in women’s tennis, with players like Kerber capable of defeating even the best in the world on any given day.
As the Paris Olympics continue, all eyes will be on Angelique Kerber as she looks to build on her impressive victory over Naomi Osaka and make a deep run in the women’s singles tennis tournament. And for Osaka, this defeat will undoubtedly serve as motivation to bounce back and continue her quest for more Grand Slam titles in the future.
