Naomi Osaka announced her arrival in 2018 by defeating Serena Williams to claim her first Grand Slam title at the US Open. At just 21, Osaka overpowered the 23-time major champion, who was chasing Margaret Court’s record of 24, in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4, in a contest lasting one hour and 19 minutes.
After her breakthrough major, Osaka cemented her status by winning the Australian Open in 2019 and 2021, along with a second US Open crown in 2020. Osaka, who welcomed her daughter Shai in July 2023, has returned to familiar ground with hopes of capturing a third US Open crown and fifth Grand Slam title.
The two-time champion opened her 2025 campaign in New York on Tuesday night with a comfortable 6-3, 6-4 victory over Belgium’s Greet Minnen. Seeded 23rd, Osaka broke serve three times in each set to assert control and advance. She will next face American Hailey Baptiste in the second round, with a place in the last 32 at stake.
Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion, has struggled for consistency since returning from maternity leave last year, but showed encouraging form with a run to the Montreal final earlier this month.
The former world number one is seeded at a major for the first time since the 2022 Australian Open and is bidding for her first tour-level title since lifting the trophy in Melbourne in 2021.
Osaka’s decision to surrender her US citizenship was shaped by both Japanese law and her parents’ wishes. Born on October 16, 1997 in Osaka to Haitian father Leonard François and Japanese mother Tamaki Osaka, she grew up with strong ties to Japan despite spending his childhood largely in the United States.
Osaka renounced her US citizenship in October 2019 to represent Japan at the 2021 Summer Olympics. She has often emphasised her deep connection to Japanese culture and identity, highlighting how strongly she associates with her birthplace.
"We made the decision that Naomi would represent Japan at an early age," Tamaki Osaka said in her daughter’s docuseries on Netflix. In a 2018 interview with The Wall Street Journal, Naomi’s mother explained that both Naomi and her sister Mari had always identified more strongly with Japan, which guided Naomi’s decision to represent the country rather than the United States. "She was born in Osaka and was brought up in a household of Japanese and Haitian culture," Tamaki said. "Quite simply, Naomi and her sister have always felt Japanese, so that was our only rationale. It was never financially motivated, nor were we influenced by any national federation."
Under Japan’s Nationality Act, dual citizens are required to choose one citizenship by the age of 22, and Osaka’s decision to relinquish her US passport came just six days before that deadline. Her parents encouraged her to embrace her Japanese identity, consistent with how they raised her. The move also ensured she could represent Japan at the Tokyo Olympics, making the choice both legal and symbolic.
According to People, Naomi’s parents met in Japan in the 1990s when Leonard was a college student and Tamaki Osaka was completing high school. After facing disapproval from Tamaki’s father, the couple settled in Osaka, where their daughters Mari (1996) and Naomi (1997) were born. When Naomi was three, the family moved to the United States, where both sisters were introduced to tennis and began their early training.
Although Leonard had no prior experience in tennis, he drew inspiration from Richard Williams, father of Venus and Serena. After watching the Williams sisters compete in 1999, when his own daughters were still young, he began studying and analysing training methods through videos to coach Naomi and Mari himself. In 2006, he relocated the family to Florida to provide better training opportunities. "The blueprint was already there. I just had to follow it," Leonard told The New York Times as quoted by People.
After her breakthrough major, Osaka cemented her status by winning the Australian Open in 2019 and 2021, along with a second US Open crown in 2020. Osaka, who welcomed her daughter Shai in July 2023, has returned to familiar ground with hopes of capturing a third US Open crown and fifth Grand Slam title.
The two-time champion opened her 2025 campaign in New York on Tuesday night with a comfortable 6-3, 6-4 victory over Belgium’s Greet Minnen. Seeded 23rd, Osaka broke serve three times in each set to assert control and advance. She will next face American Hailey Baptiste in the second round, with a place in the last 32 at stake.
Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion, has struggled for consistency since returning from maternity leave last year, but showed encouraging form with a run to the Montreal final earlier this month.
The raw emotions between Naomi Osaka and her mother Tamaki after she won her maiden US open title back in 2018. (Image Credit: X/@makhondlovu)
The former world number one is seeded at a major for the first time since the 2022 Australian Open and is bidding for her first tour-level title since lifting the trophy in Melbourne in 2021.
WHY DID NAOMI OSAKA RELINQUISH US CITIZENSHIP?
Osaka’s decision to surrender her US citizenship was shaped by both Japanese law and her parents’ wishes. Born on October 16, 1997 in Osaka to Haitian father Leonard François and Japanese mother Tamaki Osaka, she grew up with strong ties to Japan despite spending his childhood largely in the United States.
Osaka renounced her US citizenship in October 2019 to represent Japan at the 2021 Summer Olympics. She has often emphasised her deep connection to Japanese culture and identity, highlighting how strongly she associates with her birthplace.
"We made the decision that Naomi would represent Japan at an early age," Tamaki Osaka said in her daughter’s docuseries on Netflix. In a 2018 interview with The Wall Street Journal, Naomi’s mother explained that both Naomi and her sister Mari had always identified more strongly with Japan, which guided Naomi’s decision to represent the country rather than the United States. "She was born in Osaka and was brought up in a household of Japanese and Haitian culture," Tamaki said. "Quite simply, Naomi and her sister have always felt Japanese, so that was our only rationale. It was never financially motivated, nor were we influenced by any national federation."
Under Japan’s Nationality Act, dual citizens are required to choose one citizenship by the age of 22, and Osaka’s decision to relinquish her US passport came just six days before that deadline. Her parents encouraged her to embrace her Japanese identity, consistent with how they raised her. The move also ensured she could represent Japan at the Tokyo Olympics, making the choice both legal and symbolic.
Young Naomi Osaka poses with her family. (Image Credit: X/@LeftSentThis)
ALL ABOUT NAOMI'S PARENTS LEONARD AND TAMAKI
According to People, Naomi’s parents met in Japan in the 1990s when Leonard was a college student and Tamaki Osaka was completing high school. After facing disapproval from Tamaki’s father, the couple settled in Osaka, where their daughters Mari (1996) and Naomi (1997) were born. When Naomi was three, the family moved to the United States, where both sisters were introduced to tennis and began their early training.
The Osaka sisters at the US Open in the early 2000s. (Image Credit: X/@christophclarey and NYT)
Although Leonard had no prior experience in tennis, he drew inspiration from Richard Williams, father of Venus and Serena. After watching the Williams sisters compete in 1999, when his own daughters were still young, he began studying and analysing training methods through videos to coach Naomi and Mari himself. In 2006, he relocated the family to Florida to provide better training opportunities. "The blueprint was already there. I just had to follow it," Leonard told The New York Times as quoted by People.
