Naomi Osaka gets emotional after unexpected surprise at US Open for daughter Shai & herself

Naomi Osaka gushed over the customized gifts she received from fans during US Open Fan Week. In those two days, the Japanese player played the mixed doubles with Gael Monfils but lost to Lorenzo Musetti and Caty McNally in the last 16.

Naomi Osaka, who reached the top rank on the WTA in 2019, broke into the upper echelon of women's tennis in 2018, trouncing the legendary Serena Williams to take her first Grand Slam at the US Open. She repeated her Flushing Meadows success in 2020, defeating Victoria Azarenka and becoming the first player to win a women's singles title in New York coming from a set down since 1994.

She also made waves for her activism, wearing a different black mask in each of her seven matches to protest against the killings of African Americans. Osaka has garnered love and respect not only for her tennis prowess but also for her efforts beyond the sport.

As she heads into another US Open this year, she posted a picture of the adorable gifts she received for herself and her daughter, Shai, during Fan Week. The Instagram story featured keychains with 'Osaka' and 'Shai' written on them, a customized diary for the latter, and another keychain with the Grand Slam champion's picture on it.

Expressing gratitude to fans, she captioned:

"You guys literally give me the best gifts.. thank you!!"

Osaka gushes over fan gifts at the US Open; Instagram - @naomiosaka

Osaka won the WTA 125 Open de Saint-Malo this year, her first title since the Australian Open in 2021. She was a finalist at the Canadian Open, but lost to teenage star Victoria Mboko.

Naomi Osaka revealed her biggest motivator to document her career and post-motherhood life in her latest documentary

Osaka at the BNP Paribas Open - Previews - (Source: Getty)

Naomi Osaka welcomed her daughter, Shai, in July 2023. She shares her two-year-old with her former boyfriend and American rapper, Cordae. Osaka recently appeared on the Today Show to talk about her documentary, Naomi Osaka: The Second Set, chronicling her life after embracing motherhood.

She shared that the documentary would be a time capsule for Shai to enjoy when she grows up, and offer a peek into what motherhood is.

“I think for me, honestly, one of my biggest motivators was, of course, for people to understand the story of motherhood. But, also, I kind of wanted a little time capsule for my daughter to watch when she grows up." (0:54 onwards)

Osaka also confirmed that her daughter would attend the US Open, her first tennis match, but wondered how the little one would react.

About the author

Agnijeeta is a US Olympics journalist at Sportskeeda. She holds a Master’s degree in English and has worked as a school teacher, a blogger, a content writer and a sports writer over the past 5 years. A lover of high-adrenaline track and field events, she was also a sprinter during her school days.

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone happens to be her favorite Olympian, and the athlete’s feat of breaking four records within 13 months inspires her, apart from the American's body language on and off the track. Grant Hackett swimming with a partially dysfunctional lung and winning gold in Athens is her all-time favorite Olympic moment.

Agnijeeta believes that deriving of unique angles from podcasts and interviews carried out by Olympics.com, along with hype-building of potential Olympic events on social media can help fill the coverage gap during the off season.

When not at her work desk, Agnijeeta likes to sing and paint. She also plays string instruments like guitar and ukulele and is an avid player of word puzzles.

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Edited by Mitali