Q. Talking about the experience of playing with Gael for the mixed doubles, who embodies joy and joie de vivre on the court. Maybe what you learned from the experience?
NAOMI OSAKA: Yeah, that's my GOAT right there. He's super kind. He's exactly how I would think of when I see him just constantly telling me, like, Good point, or to keep going. Super adorable.
We were talking about our kids. I was joking that we're Team Parents because we both have daughters. He was saying they should go on a play date, which I think was super cute.
Yeah, it's kind of interesting. I don't think he knows how important of a figure he is to tennis players like me, because back when the Miami Open was the Sony Ericsson, I would literally go, like when I was 10, 12, 13, to watch him and Tsonga. I vividly remember sitting there in the heat just waiting for his specific match to come on.
So, to play with him was really cool.
Fresh off a runner-up finish at the Omnium Banque Nationale, a WTA 1000 tournament, Osaka is looking to make her best run at the Open since she last won the title in 2020, entering the draw as a seed for the first time in five years.
“For me, the US Open is an embodiment of New York,” said Osaka, who will face Greet Minnen as the No. 23 seed in the first round, “and it's very loud and busy, but it's also really special.”
