Naomi Osaka reveals plan to leave tennis to be with her daughter Shai in brutally honest assessment

Naomi Osaka has made a brutally honest assessment about her uncertain tennis future. The player, who gave birth to her first daughter, Shai, in 2023, alluded to shifting priorities while addressing her present on-court form.

Osaka, ranked No. 57 in the world, is presently competing at the 2025 ASB Classic in Auckland. Seeded seventh, the player faces Israeli qualifier Lina Glushko in the opening round on Monday, December 30.

In the press conference ahead of her match, Naomi Osaka touched on her tennis future and her comeback in 2024 after a 15-month-long maternity break. Although she made a steep climb from being unranked to being inside the top 60, the former World No. 1 said that her results over the past year “humbled her.”

"I think 2024 humbled me, but I also feel like I grew a lot," she said.

Naomi Osaka was commended by many notable figures in the tennis world for her increased dedication to tennis after becoming a mother. Osaka shared a similar sentiment.

"I worked way harder than I’ve ever worked before," she added. "So in that, I guess it was very painful to not get the results I wanted, but I feel like I’m growing and learning and I am really excited for (2025)."

However, the four-time Grand Slam champion, who has had a decorated career so far, conveyed that she doesn’t plan to “hang around” if she doesn’t produce the results she expects of herself.

"I don’t think I’m the type of player that would hang around," she said. "I have a lot of respect for all the players on tour, but the point of my life that I’m at right now, if I’m not above a certain ranking, I don’t see myself playing for a while."

Osaka added that she wishes to further prioritize motherhood if she happens to fall short of her goals on the tennis court.

"I’d rather spend time with my daughter if I’m not where I think I should be and where I feel like I can be."

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Naomi Osaka on her 2024 season: "I'm glad that I was able to give people memories"

Naomi Osaka (R) pictured with Iga Swiatek at the 2024 French Open - Image Source: Getty

Naomi Osaka staged some memorable performances during the 2024 season. Her best results were reaching the quarterfinals at the WTA 1000 event in Doha and the WTA 500 in ‘S-Hertogenbosch. She also made the Round of 16 at the WTA 1000 events in Beijing and Rome.

Her best on-court moment, though, came at the French Open. Although the Japanese player crashed out in the second round, she gave four-time tournament champion Iga Swiatek a run for her money, producing a match-point opportunity against the eventual winner.

"I played really good matches. People still talk to me about my Iga match at the French Open. So I’m glad that I was able to give people memories as well," she said in the aforementioned press conference.

Osaka also expressed optimism about her 2025 campaign while throwing light on her final match of the 2024 season against Coco Gauff in Beijing. While her season ended with a mid-match retirement against Gauff, she challenged the eventual champion by clinching a set (3-6, 6-4 (Ret.)).

"Even though I got injured in Beijing, which was my last tournament, I feel pretty optimistic about how that match would have turned out (against Coco Gauff) and I am excited to play on hardcourt again," she said.

Naomi Osaka has touched down in Auckland after an intense training block with her new coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, at UCLA.