Naomi Osaka stuns Australian Open fans with bizarre act in first Grand Slam match since becoming a mum
NAOMI OSAKA stunned Australian Open fans with a brilliant act in her first Grand Slam match as a mum.
The former world No1 is a two-time champion at Melbourne Park.
But she was playing her first major tournament since giving birth to her baby daughter Shai in July.
And although the 26-year-old was edged out by No16 seed Caroline Garcia in the first round on Monday, Osaka still grabbed plenty of attention.
That was partly down to what she did at one of the changeovers during the match.
World No831 Osaka took her seat on the bench then reached into her bag to whip out a book and started reading it during the brief break in play.
And tennis fans flooded social media with brilliant responses.
The Australian Open shared the clip on social media and captioned the post: “World-class multi-tasking from @naomiosaka during a change of ends. There’s never a bad time for a good book.”
One said: “Snape kills Dumbledore,” referencing the Harry Potter series.
Another wrote: “According to Naomi Osaka, there’s no better time to read a book than during a change of ends.”
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A third added: “What is she reading?”
And a final user replied: “Naomi Osaka’s return to Grand Slam tennis did not go as planned, but she did get a bit of light reading in during her first-round match.”
The reality, though, is that the book was not a novel but instead a notebook filled with tactics and plans to try and help her win the match.
However, the lack of match fitness and sharpness proved critical as Garcia ran out a 6-4 7-6 winner on Rod Laver Arena.
But former Wimbledon winner Martina Navratilova launched a scathing attack on Osaka, who has previously taken breaks from tennis due to struggling with her mental health and stress.
Navratilova controversially told the Tennis Channel: “Tennis-wise, it was maybe a B-plus performance. But overall a C, because she couldn’t get to the ball. She’s not in shape.
“I’m surprised she played this tournament without clearly being in the tip-top shape she needs to be in.
“She was stretched out way too much and she didn’t have a break point. That tells you all you need to know about that match.”
Osaka said: “Coming here and playing three tough matches I feel positive that I’m at least able to challenge [the top players].
“But the competitor in me is really frustrated that I’m not winning these matches of course.
“I wouldn’t say this comeback is how I thought [it would go] because I’m delusional enough to think I could have won the tournament and I think my delusion is what allows me to win tournaments.”
