There’s something cerebral about Osaka’s nursery, too—the clouds notwithstanding. A zenness in proportion and verve, but with touches of her unique personality beneath it. Osaka is clearly in a reflective mood, considering motherhood in tandem with her eventual return to the sporting spotlight. “I’m excited to have the opportunity [to play] again,” she says. “I’ve been playing tennis since I was three, and I think it’s one of those things where I needed to take a step back to appreciate it more. I also just really want to see fans again. During COVID, the distance hit me really hard.”
Courtesy of Crate & Barrel
Osaka says she tries “not to watch [tennis] at all” when she isn’t competing, preferring to focus on what’s ahead and not let her absence get… well, in her head. “I remember following the Australian Open a little bit earlier this year, and it made me upset because I’ve never missed an Australian Open.” (She has won the A.O., and the U.S. Open, twice each.)
“It was kind of hard to cope with those feelings of wanting to be there really badly,” she continues. “I wouldn’t trade this for the world, but it was just hard to watch everyone competing over there [while I was] sitting out.”
Slam FOMO does not outweigh her excitement about parenthood, though–especially parenthood and tennis, once Osaka is ready to return. “I think what’s most exciting for me,” Osaka says, “is just growing together. Going through life together.” She says her own mother “wants to cook for the baby and teach the baby Japanese,” but it’s something her father said during her own childhood that’s resonating most strongly in terms of how she’s going to approach being a mom.
For all the latest fasion News Click Here
