Superstar Osaka’s Brisbane boost ‘best news for tennis’
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The women’s tour needs superstars and will benefit from former world No.1 Naomi Osaka’s return at the Brisbane International following a 15-month break, leading tennis coach Patrick Mouratoglou says.
The four-time grand slam winner and double Australian Open champion last played a WTA tournament at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo in late September 2022.
She had a daughter, Shai, in July this year.
Osaka will return to action for the Brisbane warm-up event ahead of the Open, which takes place at Melbourne Park from January 14-28.
“It’s the best news for women’s tennis,” Mouratoglou, former coach of Serena Williams, told Eurosport.
“Now you have Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka – not that there are no others because of course there are many others, but those two are super-exciting.
“They are superstars, so they’re great for the WTA. The WTA needs superstars. We had so many great years with Serena, Venus (Williams) and Maria Sharapova, who are three really huge stars.
“It draws a lot of attention to women’s tennis when you have players like that. So I’m very excited that Naomi comes back. She’s great.”
Mouratoglou tipped Osaka, winner of the Australian Open in 2019 and 2021, to perform well on her comeback, saying her raw power and aggressive style would help her shake off any rust.
“She has such a huge game, huge shots. Having the mindset, the will and the shots, she can really do some damage,” the Frenchman said.
“She will be ready for the Australian Open. She will just lack matches.
“We’ll know quite fast if she’s able to be competitive immediately or if she will need a bit more time to become competitive. But I feel she will be competitive straight away.”
The returning Osaka is unlikely to have things all her own way at the Brisbane International, which starts on December 31.
Reigning Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka, along with Elena Rybakina, Jelena Ostapenko, Victoria Azarenka, Sofia Kenin and Sloane Stephens complete a stacked women’s draw.
Reuters
