The four-time Grand Slam winner is in better shape in the new year.
Former world number one Naomi Osaka has reached a WTA Tour semi-final for the first time in two and a half years. The 27-year-old defeated unseeded American Hailey Baptiste 6-7 (2-7), 6-1, 6-2 in the Auckland quarterfinals, showing an upward trend just before the Australian Open. The last time the Japanese reached the last four was at the Miami Open in April 2022, and she had since taken a 15-month break to have a baby.
Her opponent in the semi-finals will be either the number eight seed Katie Volynets or her unseeded American compatriot Alycia Parks. “I’ve put in a lot of work over the last year, and even though the results don’t show it yet, I’m trying to keep working as hard as possible to see where it takes me,” said the four-time Grand Slam winner. She is ”happy to play three-set matches like this because I think this is the kind of experience I need.”
Since her return to the tour after the birth of her daughter Shai in July 2023, Osaka has been struggling to catch up with the world’s best. It has been more than three and a half years since her last major victory at the 2021 Australian Open, and by the end of 2024 she had been slowed down by injury problems.
