Naomi Osaka was definitely dissatisfied on Saturday after falling in straight units to Iga Swiatek within the Miami Open ultimate, however the four-time Grand Slam champion mentioned she might go away Florida with one thing extra invaluable than the winner’s trophy.
Osaka solely dropped one set en path to the ultimate, the place her spectacular run got here to an abrupt finish as she fell 4-6, 0-6, however the 24-year-old Japanese participant mentioned she discovered a invaluable lesson whereas falling brief.
“I have learned that like, I don’t know, I’m not as disappointed as I normally would be, like I think normally I would be crying in the locker room or something, but now I’m kind of like chill,” mentioned Osaka.
“I feel like I know what I want to do better, and I just want to go back and start training again to like hopefully win a tournament next time.”
Those had been encouraging phrases to listen to from Osaka, who took a break from the game final yr to prioritise her psychological well being and arrived in Florida after an early exit at Indian Wells the place she was decreased to tears after being heckled throughout a match.
Osaka, whose final match win got here on the 2021 Australian Open, mentioned her new perspective doesn’t imply she isn’t hungry for extra titles and that she remains to be pushing herself to change into a greater participant.
“It’s all about keeping a certain perspective. Playing Iga today, just knowing the kind of roll that she’s on, I guess I have to think about it more, like what specifically did I learn today,” mentioned Osaka.
“It’s form of cool to be blown away by an individual, like an opponent, however on the identical time, I really feel like I’m robust sufficient that that shouldn’t occur.
“So I’m a bit like irritated a little bit, but I feel like, you know, this is like the learning process, and something good will happen eventually if I keep sticking with what I’m doing.”
Osaka mentioned she goes to take the upcoming claycourt season “really seriously” and plans to observe video of 13-time French Open males’s champion Rafael Nadal to check his motion on the floor.
For the primary time in her profession, Osaka additionally plans to spend per week coaching in Europe to organize for the Madrid Open, which final yr was gained by Aryna Sabalenka because the Belarusian discovered a method to change her fortunes on clay.
“Like I’m clearly not a clay expert, but, you know, I feel like if I get my movement together, I should be pretty good,” mentioned Osaka.
“You know, Madrid, Sabalenka won that last year, so I think that there is opportunities for me to do well, as well. I just have to get my mentality together to know that every match would be a fight.”
