"My heart was racing a lot" - Naomi Osaka after battling hard for first Wimbledon win in 5 years against Diane Parry

Naomi Osaka won his first encounter at the Wimbledon since 2018, beating Diane Parry in her opening match on Monday. She overcame a stumble to prevail 6-1, 1-6, 6-4.

The Japanese has not played at Wimbledon since in the last four editions and had lost her 2019 opening-round match to Yulia Putintseva.

On being asked if she enjoyed the match during her on-court interview, Osaka said she was far too nervous to have fun on the court.

The four-time Grand Slam champion went on heap praise on her opponent, saying Parry was a great player and she was happy to have come through the encounter without having to a play a third-set tiebreaker.

“You know, I wish I could say I enjoyed it all the time, my heart was racing a lot,” Naomi Osaka said. “But, you know, I feel like these are the type of matches that you kind of have to play just in order to ease into the tournament.”

“And, I don't know, she's a great player. So I’m really glad that even though you're saying I played a little up and down, I was still able to, I’m just glad that I was able to, hopefully not play like a third set tiebreaker.”

Osaka said she felt her opponent was rushing her and putting extra pressure by using the slice shot frequently. She, however, was quick to add that a win like this was good for her “character” development.

“I feel like today honestly felt very hectic just because of the way she played,” Naomi Osaka said. “I had to constantly tell myself to be in control of the point. When she was slicing and stuff, it was a little stressful.”

“I feel really relieved to have won this in three sets. I think it will do good for my character development,” she added.

"It was fun because the crowd was so engaged" - Naomi Osaka after Wimbledon win

Naomi Osaka after beating Diane Parry at Wimbledon.

Naomi Osaka also discussed the match environment, saying she enjoyed playing in front of a packed crowd and that the fans were really engaged.

While conceding that her performance was up-and-down throughout most of the match, she said there were still plenty of positives to take away from the win.

“For me, it felt really fun and really stressful at the same time,” Naomi Osaka said. “It was fun because the crowd was so engaged. ... It felt like an arena.”

“The match I think was a little up-and-down, but I think overall it was something that I can take a lot away from,” she added.

Through to the second round, Osaka will take on 13th seed Emma Navarro for a place in the last-32. The second-round encounter is likely to take place on Wednesday (July 3).