PICTURE: Naomi Osaka finally shakes off US Open heartbreak as Japanese back to intense training ahead of Asian Swing

Naomi Osaka, who made it to the semifinals of the 2025 US Open before suffering a defeat against Amanda Anisimova, is in China but is not playing the ongoing Billie Jean King Cup Finals in Shenzhen.

On Thursday, Osaka shared a post that seems to suggest that she's ready to shake off the US Open heartbreaking semifinal exit. The post featured her feet with sneakers on alongside a few tennis balls with the location tagged as Beijing, China. It is an indication that she's preparing for the upcoming Asian Swing.

Naomi Osaka's Instagram story

After making her first Grand Slam semifinal since returning from maternity leave. She lost a tight match to Amanda Anisimova (6-7(4), 7-6(3), 6-3). Despite the loss, Osaka called her performance "inspiring," saying she gave her best.

"Honestly I don't feel sad," Osaka said. "It's really weird. Well, it's not weird, because I just feel like I did the best that I could... Just knowing that I love the sport. I want to play matches. I want to play in Arthur Ashe Stadium and do whatever it takes to get there. I think just willing to accept the grind for me is something that I worked really hard on."

Osaka, who jumped 10 places in the rankings after her run to the semi-finals in New York, said she looks forward to being seeded again in major tournaments. She said:

"Getting far in the U.S. Open was definitely a confidence booster ... but the season is not done yet. I honestly got a little farther than I thought I would. I just wanted to be seeded in slams, but now I don't know what ranking I'm at, but I think I'm kind of getting up there.

"Obviously, I want to do well in Australia. I always happen to play well there. So doing well in the Asian swing, and then closing off the rest of the year, is my goal now."

Team Japan coach explains Naomi Osaka's absence in BJK Finals

In the absence of Naomi Osaka, Team Japan couldn't advance in the Billie Jean King Cup Finals after losing in the opening round against Team Great Britain. Before the loss, Team Japan captain Ai Sugiyama revealed that Osaka wanted to be part of the BJK Cup team, but due to injuries, she couldn't travel to China.

“She got injured. She really wanted to come here to compete,” the team captain said. “I hope she’s cheering for us. I haven’t talked to her much. She was too disappointed because she got injured. But I’m sure she’s cheering for us.”

Naomi Osaka is expected to compete in the 2025 China Open, which runs from September 24 to October 6, 2025, at the National Tennis Center in Beijing.