Naomi Osaka may be on the other side of the world, but she’s mostly thinking about home. After beating Caroline Garcia, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, in the first round of the Australian Open, Osaka revealed she asked someone to collect her birth certificate daughter at home in the Los Angeles area. wildfires that destroyed large swathes of Southern California was approaching her house.
“I was looking at the fire map and the fire is about three blocks from my house,” Osaka said during her on-court interview after the game. “So I had someone go get my daughter’s birth certificate and all that, because I didn’t know what would happen if it burned.
“Sending all my love to Los Angeles. I know we hear about fires, but for me in particular, I didn’t know how devastating it could be. I just hope everyone is well and I send them all my love.”
Osaka, 27, is due in July 2023 and returned to tennis about a year ago. She has two Australian Open titles (2019, 2021) and two US Open titles (2018, 2020) to her credit and just made the final of the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand. Zealand, earlier this month – her first final since 2022. Osaka won the first set of this match against Clara Tauson but was forced to withdraw due to an injury to her the abdomen.
Osaka, ranked 51st in the world and unseeded at the Australian Open, admitted it had been difficult to stay focused on tennis but ultimately did an “acceptable job” in victory over Garcia.
“It’s really hard for me because I think it’s harder now, because I find my house more of a home, because I have memories with my daughter, and there are so many things like keepsakes and stuff like that, and obviously you can’t hoard them all when you have someone go to your house and just collect stuff.
Osaka said her family was safe and often checked on the status of the fires. She added that she has no plans to return to Los Angeles in the immediate future, which motivates her to continue winning Down Under. Osaka will face 20th seed Karolina Muchova in the second round.
Osaka isn’t the only Australian Open contender thinking about Los Angeles. Coco Gauff wrote a message on camera after her first round victory.
