Tennis Star Naomi Osaka Speaks On How Postpartum Changes Has Affected Her On The Court: ‘I Don’t Feel Like I’m In My Body’

Tennis Star Naomi Osaka Speaks On How Postpartum Changes Has Affected Her On The Court: ‘I Don’t Feel Like I’m In My Body’

Naomi Osaka is opening up about her love of tennis and life changes after becoming a mother.

Today (Aug. 13), the 26-year-old shared a post to her Instagram account addressing her recent matches and the struggles she’s facing. Kicking off the open letter, Naomi Osaka wrote,

“I’ve been trying to figure out how I feel for the past several hours. In a weird way I’ve come to appreciate losses, you don’t play tennis for 20+ years without your fair share of them. You learn from a loss and then eagerly await your next opportunity to put what you learned to test.”

Naomi Osaka’s message comes after she was defeated by Ashlyn Krueger in the qualifying final round for the Cincinnati main draw. Osaka lost 6-3, 2-6, 6-3 against world No. 82 Krueger. According to a report from Tennis Tonic, this now means that Osaka “will either need a wild card or have to play qualifying once more in order to get into the US Open main draw in 2024.”

Naomi Osaka

Continuing her message, Osaka wrote,

“My biggest issue currently isn’t losses though, my biggest issue is that I don’t feel like I’m in my body. It’s a strange feeling, missing balls I shouldn’t miss, hitting balls softer than I remember I used to. I try and tell myself “it’s fine you’re doing great, just get through this one and keep pushing”, mentally it’s really draining though.”

She added,

“Don’t get me wrong, I’ve played a handful of matches this year that I felt like I was myself and I know this moment is probably just a small phase from all the new transitions (clay, grass, clay, hard etc), however the only feeling I could liken how I feel right now to is being postpartum. That scares [me] because I’ve been playing tennis since I was 3, the tennis racquet should feel like an extension of my hand.”

Before ending the post, Osaka noted she doesn’t “understand why everything has to feel almost brand new again,” but she’s going to give herself grace moving forward.

As previously reported, Osaka welcomed her daughter with rapper Cordae last July. At the time of this report, it’s unclear if they’re still together.

If you’re balancing motherhood with your work life leave some encouraging words for Naomi Osaka in the comments below!