Naomi Osaka makes earnest gift request of friends in her life

Japanese tennis icon Naomi Osaka has taken to social media to ask her friends, family and followers to regularly send her flowers. Four-time Major winner Osaka was posting after a torrid start to 2025 when a return to form on the court was hampered by a series of recurrent injuries.

Osaka withdrew from the Abu Dhabi Open, citing the need for rest after an abdominal strain saw her exit the Australian Open during her third-round match against Belinda Bencic. Off-court issues have hampered the former WTA World No. 1 for the last couple of years, but she has indicated that a return to full fitness in 2025 is a possibility.

Until then, Osaka has taken to her Threads account to request her supporters for a morale boost in the form of a floral tribute, imploring:

"Need someone to get me flowers that look like these every week or two"

Screenshot of Naomi Osaka Threads post (https://www.threads.net/@naomiosaka/post/DFs-kxlSUKA?xmt=AQGzfamUT9sIUDwPrUUzz3o7yzF5dGbffhljBNJBsNDTPQ)

The 27-year-old is currently ranked No. 42 in the world, chiefly as a result of the Melbourne breakdown, which followed another early retirement in the ASB Classic in Auckland the week before, where she reached the final. Despite the setbacks, Osaka had started the year well, with a 6-2 win/loss record in the first two events of 2025.

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Naomi Osaka's start to 2025 suggests she can recover her best form, despite her injury problems

2025 Australian Open - Day 4 - Source: Getty

Naomi Osaka defeated France's Caroline Garcia and the Czech Karolina Muchova at the Australian Open and appeared to be playing somewhere close to her best tennis. There's no doubting her pedigree - she has two Australian and two US Open wins under her belt, and in 2019 she was the WTA's number one ranked player in the world - the first Asian player to do so.

After dropping out of the Australian Open, Osaka said that she is still hopeful of getting back to her best:

“I think just to know that I’m improving as a person. Just to try as hard as I can every day, no matter what I do, and then I feel like if I do that, the bar of like trying is gonna keep getting taller.”

Recovering her best form will not be easy while injuries continue to thwart her best efforts, but she can look upon her start to the new year with some optimism. Her last Grand Slam win was in 2021, and if her fans can get behind her to boost her morale, she can win another Major. For now, she's focused on getting healthy for a March 1 exhibition match with Aryna Sabalenka in Las Vegas.