“I think most people don’t know that mental health is as important as your physical health, and in some ways, it might be more important.” Naomi Osaka told People last year. After coming from a long break, due to her maternity leave, she had a dry run in 2024. She couldn’t win a single title last season. Now, the former World No.1 is gearing up to kick off 2025 on a high note in Melbourne. Especially at an event like Australian Open where she’s won the trophy twice, back in 2019 and 2021. So how’s she keeping herself channelized ahead of her campaign, especially on a mental level?

For the unversed, Osaka was absent from the tennis court from January 2023 until the early phase of 2024, as she was pregnant with her first child with her partner, Cordae. After giving birth to her daughter Shai, the 27-year-old was busy in recovery to make a strong return. In late 2023, when asked whether being a mother brought changes to her life, she revealed, “I think definitely there has been,” as reported by Yahoo! Finance in November 2023.

Stressing on the importance of mental health, she added, “I know a couple of years ago, it didn’t really exist at all, so I’m really glad like tournaments are stepping up, organizations are stepping up, and it’s becoming a bit more of a comfortable topic to talk about. Because I know with athletes, sometimes you can see it as a weakness. But I’m really glad that it’s becoming a bit more open.”

“Honestly, I think just more people are talking about it, so I feel like the people that didn’t feel as comfortable or the people that didn’t really think that it was OK to talk about mental health are now talking about it and seeing that it’s acceptable too,” she further mentioned. Considering how much crucial mental health is for her, Naomi Osaka is making sure to keep it intact. Especially at a time when the nerves may come into play, going into her Australian Open rematch against Caroline Garcia, later this week.

In a pre-event press conference, she revealed what she’s “doing in terms of protecting your mental health” on an everyday basis. “What am I doing every day? I meditate. Sometimes I listen to I guess water noises, like rain or ocean or forest noises,” she answered. “I also like to write in my notebook a lot just to keep track of my thoughts,” she concluded.

While her focus on her mental stability is key, Osaka is also looking forward to her match-up against a longtime rival. Interestingly, they are going to have a second-straight first round encounter in the Australian Open after last year’s edition.

Naomi Osaka on playing Caroline Garcia, again, in the first round of Australian Open

In the same interview, she was asked to comment on meeting France’s Caroline Garcia in a second straight first round down under. Last year, Garcia emerged victorious, beating Naomi Osaka 6-4, 7-6(2) to advance further. In total, the upcoming match-up will be their third in the Australian Open. When Osaka faced Garcia the first time, in 2021’s edition, she won that encounter and went on to clinch her second AO title too.

After the women’s draws were confirmed on Thursday, Osaka couldn’t believe that she will face Garcia. “Yeah, I asked Stuart, and I thought he was joking when he said that,” she revealed. “I don’t know. I feel like we haven’t played in a couple of months, so maybe it was to be expected, too (smiling),” she added.

Lately, the two have become good friends off court, thanks to their recurring encounters. After the AO meeting, they also played each other in the Miami Open in March 2024. In the third round, they came face-to-face once again. Garcia took the match 7-6(4), 7-5 and advanced ahead. After the match, however, Osaka jokingly said, “Man, we’re friends at this point! We’re just, you know, work buddies,” she said of Garcia. “We see each other all the time. It’s funny. I just want to be seeded so I can just stop playing her, like…” she added, as reported by Tennis.com back in March.

Reiterating her sentiments ahead of the upcoming face-off, Osaka said, “I don’t know. I feel like we haven’t played in a couple of months, so maybe it was to be expected, too (smiling). Yeah, I would say my relationship with her, it’s definitely grown a lot. I can’t say, like, we’re BFFs. I really respect her a lot. I feel the same energy coming from her.”

On a fun note, even Garcia had similar reactions after knowing that she’s pitted against Osaka once again. “New year, same draw @AustralianOpen This is starting to be a classic @naomiosaka” she wrote on X, on Thursday. In their head-to-head battles, both are even at this point, at 2-2. Who do you think will take a lead this time and make progress in the Australian Open? Let us know in the comments below.