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It had been a tough few months for Japanese Tennis player Naomi Osaka, and she could not participate in several tournaments. She even withdrew from the French Open, saying that she was facing mental problems and anxiety.
We are all glad to see that Naomi Osaka was able to come out stronger and managed to overcome the problems. What made things even better was that she was able to bag her first win in the US Open with a straight-set victory. Osaka was matched against the world number 87 Marie Bouzkova from Czech Republic, and she was able to win 6-4 and 6-1 in the first match.
In the next match, Osaka will face Serbia’s Olga Danilovic, the world number 145. After seeing the kind of form she is in, it is safe to say that Osaka should have an easy victory over the competition.
This is a good sign for Osaka, as she had previously withdrawn from Roland Garros in May, citing “long bouts of depressing” after winning the 2018 US Open, her first major title. In June, she even skipped Wimbledon but then returned for the Tokyo Olympics where she was knocked out in the third round.
It would be unfair to say that her first win at the US Open was easy because Bouzkova impressed the crowd in the early part of the game and gave Osaka a hard time. However, once Osaka got the lead, she was able to seal her victory.
Osaka, who also won the 2021 Australian Open, had come into the tournament with only three wins in the last three months, but she quickly regained her form and outperformed her opponent in the second set.
After winning the match, Osaka said that she was happy about playing at the Arthur Ashe Stadium again and said that she felt comfortable. She also said that playing in front of fans after so long was a different experience because previously the tournaments were being held behind closed doors because of the pandemic. To celebrate her win, Osaka ran to a young fan and gave her a souvenir.
The opening day of the US Open was not just fruitful for Osaka because Simona Halep was also able to return with a win after she missed the French Open and the Wimbledon after suffering from a torn calf.
Garbine Muguruza also claimed a victory over Donna Vekic, whereas Sloane Stephens won against Madison Keys. This year’s US Open has given the fans a great start, and we can only expect better matches in the future.
Regardless of who wins the trophy, let’s hope that we all witness great matches that we will remember for the years to come. Naomi Osaka has had a tough few years, and it is an excellent sight for any tennis fan to see her back in winning form again. The current number one Ashleigh Barty began her campaign on Tuesday.
