"Couldn't walk without pain": Naomi Osaka recalls how she almost lost hope of "high intensity" comeback; explains her tears after US Open 1R win

Naomi Osaka elaborated on why she was in tears after her first-round win over Jelena Ostapenko at the US Open. The Japanese said that a year ago, she was unable to walk without feeling pain.

Osaka returned to the New York Major after missing the 2023 edition shortly after giving birth to her daughter. The Japanese faced tenth seed Jelena Ostapenko in the opening round and registered a 6-3, 6-2 win to book her place in the second round.

After the match, Osaka broke down in tears.

The 26-year-old later took to Instagram and shared an old image of herself on crutches. She said that a year ago, she could not even walk without pain and that she had her reservations about playing at a high level.

"I've been asked why I was so emotional yesterday and honestly if you don't even include coming back from pregnancy, New York being my home, etc, this was me a year ago. I legitimately couldn't walk without pain and I didn't know if I could play at a high intensity anymore. So yeah, this sport means a lot to me," Osaka captioned her story.

Naomi Osaka's Instagram story (Source: Instagram)

---

Naomi Osaka recalls crying after beating Aryna Sabalenka at US Open 2018

Naomi Osaka in action at US Open 2024 (Soure: Getty)

During her post-match press conference, Naomi Osaka was asked if she had ever been so emotional after a win like she was after beating Jelena Ostapenko. The Japanese recalled her victory over Aryna Sabalenka in the fourth round of the 2018 US Open, claiming that she cried "really hard" after that win since she hadn't won a round of 16 match at a Major before.

"You know, I would say yes, and it was probably on the same exact court, so maybe it's that court that does something to me. The first US Open that I won, I played Sabalenka in the round of 16. I remember I cried really hard after that, because I was having my, like, barrier of I couldn't get to the round of 16 or the quarters. I think it was the round of 16 though," Osaka said.

"Yeah, it's funny, though, I feel like I cried a lot more now than I did, like, winning slams. That's a little funny. Yeah," she added.

The fourth-round clash at US Open 2018 remains Osaka's only match against Sabalenka so far. The Belarusian is also through to the second round of this year's edition of the New York Major after a 6-3, 6-3 win over Priscilla Hon. She will next take on Lucia Bronzetti, with the winner meeting either 29th seed Ekaterina Alexandrova or Iva Jovic in the third round.

As for Naomi Osaka, she next faces Karolina Muchova, who won her first-round clash 6-3, 7-5 against Katie Volynets. The head-to-head between the two currently stands at 1-1, with the winner squaring off against either Anastasia Potapova or Varvara Lepchenko in the third round.