Melbourne, Australia
AP
—
A statement of confidence as a lot as type, Naomi Osaka walked onto one of many greatest levels in tennis carrying a wide-brim hat, a veil and holding a white parasol in a daring opening act at the Australian Open.
Aware that such an iconic walk-on may backfire if she misplaced her first-round match, Osaka did every little thing she wanted Tuesday to carry down the curtain on Day 3 at Rod Laver Arena with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-4 victory over Antonia Ruzic.
The hat and umbrella had been adorned with symbolic butterflies, a nod to one of many memorable moments of Osaka’s final title run at Melbourne Park in 2021 fairly than a mirrored image of the same old first-round jitters at a serious match.
“When I was playing today, I just told myself, like, ‘Keep your head on the path. If she beats you, then that’s unfortunate. But, hey, at least you’re trending,’” on social media, she mentioned.
Osaka has received 4 Grand Slam singles titles, together with two at the U.S. Open and two in Australia in 2019 and 2021.
She subsequent performs Sorana Cirstea, who beat Eva Lys 3-6, 6-4, 6-3. After reaching the U.S. Open semifinals final yr — her finest consequence at a Grand Slam occasion in 4 years — Osaka is rising in confidence.
Born in Japan however rising up in America, Osaka was impressed by Venus and Serena Williams and Maria Sharapova, the tennis stars she described because the “G.O.A.T’s of style.”
“I think it all comes down to personality, too,” she mentioned.
The gown she wore in her first-round match, in shades of blue and inexperienced, was additionally a tribute to her daughter, Shai, and her fascination with jellyfish.
“So, the inspiration was obviously the jellyfish, then butterflies, which kind of ties back to the butterfly moment I had here a long time ago, in 2021,” Osaka mentioned, recalling the photographs of 1 touchdown on her throughout a third-round match.
Osaka mentioned to her clothes sponsor, Nike, “let me design this one.”
Related video: How Robert Wun, co-designer of Osaka gown, upends luxurious fashion’s expectations.
It took months of planning. And all of it tied in with the transformed participant tunnel at Rod Laver Arena that displays Australian themes equivalent to seashores and the coast.
“Honestly it came together quite beautifully because I didn’t know what to expect when I arrived here,” Osaka mentioned. “Then it just felt like everywhere I looked the theme was water. Obviously the walkout was like you see oceans and waves. I thought that it was really beautiful. Really amazing coincidence.”