Naomi Osaka return is 'best news for women's tennis' says Patrick Mouratoglou ahead of Brisbane comeback
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Updated 16/12/2023 at 13:56 GMT
Naomi Osaka will play her first tournament in 18 months at the Brisbane International next month. The former world No. 1 gave birth earlier this year and Serena Williams' former coach Patrick Mouratoglou is excited to see her back on the tour. Mouratoglou thinks Osaka can "do some damage" as she gets set to compete against Iga Swiatek, Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff.
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Patrick Mouratoglou believes Naomi Osaka’s return is the “best news for women’s tennis” as she prepares to make her comeback in Australia.
Former world No. 1 Osaka gave birth in the summer and hasn’t played since September 2022.
Her comeback starts at the Brisbane International next month and she has outlined her aims to add to her four Grand Slam titles.
Osaka will join a strong WTA Tour that includes world No. 1 Iga Swiatek, Australian Open Aryna Sabalenka, US Open winner Coco Gauff, Jessica Pegula, and Elena Rybakina, among others.
“I think it's the best news for women's tennis,” Mouratoglou, former coach of Serena Williams and Holger Rune, told Eurosport ahead of the Ultimate Tennis Showdown final in London, which can be seen live on discovery+.
“Now you have Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka, not there are no others because of course there are many others, but I think those two are super exciting. They are superstars, so they're great for the WTA – the WTA needs superstars.
"We had so many great years with Serena, Venus and Maria Sharapova, who are three really huge stars.
“And I think it draws a lot of attention to women's tennis when you have players like that. So I'm very excited that Naomi comes back. I think she's great. I think she can do well. I feel that she's very motivated to come back.”
Osaka won her most recent Grand Slam title at the Australian Open in 2021.
Later that year she took a break to manage her mental health after admitting battling anxiety and depression.
She has said that she is “nervous, excited and happy” ahead of her return to the tour.
“Sometimes when you are away from tennis, you realise how much you miss tennis and when you come back, you are even hungrier,” said Mouratoglou.
“So that's probably what happened to her being away for a very long time.
“Her game is huge. She has such a huge game, huge shots. I think having the mindset, the will and the shots, she can really do some damage.
“She will be ready for the Australian Open. She will just lack matches. So we'll know quite fast if she's able to be competitive immediately or if she will need a bit more time to become competitive. But I feel she will be competitive straight away.”
Osaka’s return will be one of the top stories to track when the new season starts in January.
However, if Osaka is to win more Grand Slam titles she will face stiff competition, with Swiatek, Sabalenka and Gauff among those aiming for success in Melbourne next konth.
On the current WTA landscape, Mouratoglou added: “You have Coco, being now a Grand Slam winner, you can feel that she has more confidence in her game and her ability to win majors.
“So this is going to be exciting. And of course, I don't forget all the other ones, Swiatek, Sabalenka, Rybakina, who dominated last year until Coco really came out. So they will be there too.
“There's going to be a great competition between amazing players. I think it’s going to bring a lot of more excitement in women's tennis next year.”
The Australian Open starts on January 15 and will be live on Eurosport and discovery+.
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