Naomi Osaka : Player card

The first Japanese player to win a Grand Slam singles title and to reach the World No.1 spot, Naomi Osaka has become an icon of both sport and her generation, through her achievements, her charisma and her strong social commitment.

Born in Osaka on 16 October 1997, she made her professional debut as early as 2012, aged just 14, without ever competing on the junior circuit. Her rise, however, was swift. In 2014, she won her first main‑draw match on the WTA Tour in Stanford before breaking into the Top 50 in 2016. That same year, she was named WTA Newcomer of the Year, thanks in particular to a breakthrough run to the final in Tokyo.

But it was in 2018 that a genuine breath of fresh air swept through women’s tennis. Osaka captured her first two career titles in spectacular fashion, first at Indian Wells – where she defeated three former World No.1s, Maria Sharapova, Karolina Pliskova and Simona Halep – and then at the US Open, where she overcame legend Serena Williams in the final. With her extraordinary power and remarkably clean ball‑striking, she was soon viewed as a natural heir to the American icon. That maiden Grand Slam title was swiftly followed by another a few months later, at the 2019 Australian Open against Petra Kvitova, a triumph that propelled her to the top of the world rankings.

A four‑time Grand Slam champion, Osaka completed a second US Open – Australian Open double in 2020 and 2021 and, in the process, established herself as a global superstar, a symbol of diversity and a fashion icon. The Japanese star, who made a successful return to competition in 2024 after the birth of her first child, has built an aura that extends far beyond tennis. Among many distinctions, she was chosen as the final torchbearer at the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympic Games in 2021.

The latest proof of her return to the very highest level came at the 2025 US Open, where she reached the semi‑finals of a Grand Slam for the first time in four years. A reminder that Naomi Osaka remains one of the defining figures of modern tennis.