"I’ll believe anything she wants just to see her raise a racquet again" - Tennis fans eagerly await Naomi Osaka's return as absence on tour continues

Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic
Tennis fans are looking forward to Naomi Osaka's return to the tour

Tennis fans are keenly awaiting Naomi Osaka's return to the tour for the 2023 season.

Naomi Osaka was last seen in action in September at the Japan Open, where she withdrew due to abdominal pain. She has played only 23 matches this season, finishing the year as World No. 42 with a 14-9 win-loss record.

The four-time Grand Slam champion recently took to Twitter to share a positive message about believing in oneself.

“Believe in yourself. I promise it’ll get you much further than you can imagine,” Osaka tweeted.

In response to the positive tweet, the tennis star's fans immediately enquired about her comeback to the tour.

"I'll believe anything she wants just to see her raise a racquet again," one fan wrote.

Another fan stated that the tennis world would love a rivalry between World No.1 Iga Swiatek and Naomi Osaka.

"Fighting talk ! We love it. Tennis needs you back. Swiatek Osaka rivalry is what the tennis world would love. The form that won you 4 slams. Imagine the spectacle. It would be the best rivalry in tennis. The stylistic matchup would be a joy to watch," wrote one fan.

A fan asked about her return to Australia and urged her to confirm.

"Will do but I also want to know if you're in Australia," wrote another fan.

Here are a few more fan reactions:


"She certainly has to play more than she has played" - Martina Navratilova on Naomi Osaka

Naomi Osaka pictured during the 2022 Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic
Naomi Osaka pictured during the 2022 Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic

Martina Navratilova considers the Japanese's dip in form can be related to the number of non-tennis activities in which she is engaged. Navratilova stated that Osaka needs to play more games than she did this season.

"She’s (Naomi Osaka) a very unique case, in every way. So maybe you need to deal with it uniquely. Maybe she doesn’t have to play all those matches, but she certainly has to play more than she has played," Navratilova said in an interview with WTA.
"With her, it seems to be the forces outside tennis are affecting her more than anything else. It’s baked in. How she’s set up her life with all those outside interests and influences and demands on her time greater than anybody else," she added.

Navratilova also highlighted the need to take a break from tennis at times if it is your priority.

"If her priority is tennis, then step back a little bit. You don’t have to do it all. It has to suck your energy away from tennis. I’m all for broadening your horizons -- I was never a one-trick pony -- but tennis came first. It doesn’t mean training harder, necessarily, but maybe sometimes doing nothing at all. Put your feet up or go to the beach," she stated.

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Edited by Aditya Singh
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