No such thing as a dramatic ending to a player’s post-match presser, right? Well, think again. Naomi Osaka never fails to change that. The Japanese talent has crashed out of the US Open, facing an early exit in the event’s second round. However, her recent string of losses elicited her to term how heartbreaking it is for her to endure such premature exits.

Having returned to the Tour after her pregnancy hiatus, the former World No. 1 came high-spirited in Flushing Meadows. Despite showcasing remarkable progress lately and with it, thwarting Jelena Ostapenko‘s challenge in the opener, Osaka failed. She was thrashed by Karolina Muchova, 6-3, 7-6(5), having displayed commendable resilience in the second set.

The four-time Major champion acknowledged that she was a shadow of her former self before stepping onto the sidelines due to her pregnancy. However, Osaka emitted optimism, citing that she ‘feels better’ with her performances and aims to address her emotions whenever suffering a thumping loss as such.

She said, “I feel I’m coming back from pregnancy but also it wasn’t like in 2022 I was the best version of myself. In some way, I had to catch up to that and also I’m truly to pass it as the same time. It’s been a little difficult. I feel faster. I feel better. But I lost in the 2nd round so it’s a little rough. It’s tough because I take these losses personally. This is a dramatic word.. but I feel like my heart dies every time I lose. It sucks a lot. But I’ve been trying to be more mature and learn and talk more about them.”

The Japanese star is quite resilient and has shown no signs that she plans to step away from the WTA Tour. In the Cincinnati Masters, she was out in the qualifiers. A star who used to be at the top would certainly be jaded by such loses, but Osaka moved on to the next match.

There’s no doubt that Osaka is trying her level best to restore her form. Despite falling short of producing noteworthy performances, the young talent has vowed to script takeaways from a fellow player to help enhance her on-court skills.

Naomi Osaka makes honest confession on ‘stalking’ Iga Swiatek

Let’s face it, Iga Swiatek‘s formidability is no joke. The Pole has stacked impressive results to her name and intimidates her opponents with her blasting on-court skills. While such head-turning performances urge players to learn from her skills, Naomi Osaka took on the task of ‘mimicking’ her.

Before commencing her Canadian Open campaign, the Japanese star laid bare her reasoning for stalking the World No. 1. She said, “Honestly, I was stalking Iga. I was like watching her practice at the Olympics and for me, that’s something I want to do more like watch the great players because there’s always something I can pick up on. And, I know she has one of the better footwork or probably the best footwork skills on the WTA. So yeah, I’m just trying to copy a little.”

After exiting the event in New York, chances are, Osaka will take some time off to recover and plan for what’s next. In hopes of marking her dominance on the Tour, the 25-year-old will likely inculcate the best on-court tactics she can get her hands on!