ROLAND GARROS

May 24, 2025

Naomi Osaka

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Naomi, welcome back to Roland Garros. Just talk us through how you're feeling on the court and how you're getting ready for your first-round match.

NAOMI OSAKA: Yeah, I mean, it's nice to be back. I feel pretty good on the clay, so I'm really excited to play my first match.

THE MODERATOR: Questions in English.

Q. A quick question about clay. You have had a little bit of a breakthrough this year and in good form. A question about your movement in general. The evolution of your movement on the surface, how have you approached it, how has it evolved over time, and what are the things you find enjoyable or challenging about it?

NAOMI OSAKA: I don't know if I'd be able to answer you specifically about movement on clay. I do think my movement overall has gotten better, so I can only answer you on that.

Yeah, on clay, I think I'm enjoying sliding a lot. I have played quite a few, I have played a lot of players that dropshotted me, so just sliding to those has been kind of fun. Frustrating but fun.

Yeah, just overall transitioning on using power to be fast on this surface, it's been a really good learning experience.

Q. Your decision to scale down and play the WTA 125 in France that you played, how easy a decision was that to make, to drop down a level? How did it feel once you were there? Is it something you wish you had done even sooner in this comeback to get matches?

NAOMI OSAKA: Yeah, I mean, it was something that I didn't decide to do right away. Honestly it was Patrick that kind of told me that he thinks -- which he was right, like, it would be a better use of time to even practice playing the matches there.

Yeah, I am glad that I went. I was able to explore the city, which was really beautiful. I think the decision itself was kind of difficult, because in your mind, you do have a little bit of pride.

I don't know. I was glad that I went, and I think that everyone that -- I guess every opponent that plays me is definitely going to play really well.

Yeah, glad I went. It was a hard decision, and I'm happy with the outcome, though (smiling).

Q. (Off mic.)

NAOMI OSAKA: I would say yes, there was a lot of pressure. I wouldn't really say it was to not lose, but it was more like I had in the back of my head, like, I wonder what people would say about me if I lost here. Granted, I should never be thinking about that when I'm playing a tennis match, but yeah. But I got over it, like, during the semis (smiling).

Q. I saw your post today about a 5:00 a.m. wakeup call. Could you explain what it's like to have a 5:00 a.m. anti-doping wakeup call? I have heard from some players they find themselves in weird positions with anti-doping, where when they can't produce a sample they have someone chilling with them on the couch while they are waiting. Have you had any weird experiences like that?

NAOMI OSAKA: I honestly don't know the rules about talking about anti-doping. Am I allowed to say whatever I want?

THE MODERATOR: Yeah.

NAOMI OSAKA: I don't know. They're kind of scary.

Yeah, I mean, for me, anti-doping is like -- I don't have a great relationship with them, just because they always come and take blood and urine, which I don't know if that disgusts people to say, but whatever, and my veins are, like, very notoriously hard to find.

One person once told me it was like a Japanese thing. I don't know if that's accurate. Yeah, so they come at 5:00 a.m. and stick me multiple times. Usually they can't find my veins, so they have three attempts to find it. Sometimes they can't find it. They're like, Oops, sorry, let me try this arm, let me try this arm, let me try this arm. I always have to tell them, Hey, my playing arm is my right arm, I prefer the left, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.

And today was kind of scary, because the last year I was here they also came at 5:00 a.m., and the lady couldn't find my veins at all. I had, like, huge bruises on my arms for a while. Thankfully it wasn't the same lady. No shade to her (laughter).

Yeah, today was a success because luckily I had to use the bathroom when they woke me up, so...

Q. You posted your shoes on Instagram and the Girlies did in fact love it. Can you tell me about the inspiration behind the shoes and the rest of the kit?

NAOMI OSAKA: Yeah, so the shoes are sakura-themed, which is I guess just in time for spring, which is sakura season, and it follows the flower story that we have throughout the year.

I'm really excited about the kit, because I designed it. I don't know why Nike is letting me do this stuff. I say this every slam, but I think it's really adorable. I'm just excited. I don't know if you can see from all the way over here, but I, like, did my nails and they're sakura-themed too. I'm really sticking to the flower story that we have.

Q. How common is it to go on court and have to try to play through an injury or pain or something you're dealing with? What sorts of internal or external pressures are there to do that and get out there even if you don't feel 100%?

NAOMI OSAKA: I mean, I think it depends on the level of injury or where your head's at. I think for me, I can rarely count the number of times that I have felt perfect on the court.

But I do know I'm the type of person that if I'm injured, I can almost play, like, better. Not physically better but mentally I'll know that, hey, this, like something's bothering me, so I have to give it all my energy into this single point like time and time again.

So actually, I have won, I'm going to say, like, two of my slams when I was injured, just because I knew that I had to lock in every match.

Yeah, I think it really depends on the person.

Q. Is there though a sense at all sometimes of I don't want to go out there but I have to?

NAOMI OSAKA: For me, not recently. Like, back in the old days, yeah, probably. But now, no, I think I'm enjoying the time more. I'm enjoying seeing the newer players coming up.

I don't know. Feels like the circle of life a little bit. I think for me I know that I came back and I'm choosing to spend this time away from my daughter in order to attempt to achieve things, so I have to make the most out of that time. Coming here or playing any tournament without a positive mentality would just be pointless.

Q. When you said you were woken up at 5:00 a.m., is that the time you give for your whereabouts time, or...

NAOMI OSAKA: So, what had happened was... (laughter).

Q. It sounds pretty crazy.

NAOMI OSAKA: It's always between 5:00 and 6:00, but I think for me there was, when I was younger, there was a couple times I missed my time slot, because I would go to practice, and then they would call and I would try to turn back around and go to the hotel.

I always knew that 5:00 and 6:00 there is no way I'm practicing or driving to the site, because I do practice quite early. Sometimes I practice at 8:00 or 9:00. But 5:00 and 6:00 is like a safe spot.

But I'm always shocked when they come, like, the day before the slam. It's, like, a little startling for me, but I should expect it at this point.

Q. I didn't realize you could say a time before 6:00. I thought 6:00 was the earliest. So 5:00 obviously is the earliest?

NAOMI OSAKA: Maybe there is someone that chooses 3:00, I don't know, but typically I think we have the whole 24 hours, right?

Oh, it starts at 5:00. So...

(Naomi's answers to questions in Japanese.)

NAOMI OSAKA: Yeah, I think very transparently when I won that tournament, my immediate thought was, like, I knew how much work it took to get here. It wasn't just, you know, overnight.

I would say it was like an accumulation of last year, and then obviously this year too, but I think my immediate thought was, like, this feeling of happiness is, like, 0.1% of the happiness I had when I had my daughter. So, you know, like, it's very hard to describe, just because I know there was some dialogue on that, and, you know, maybe, like, I'll try again to compare it when I, like, win a bigger tournament, but yeah, I just immediately thought about my daughter and how happy she'll be to, like, play with the trophy, because she likes to play with all the trophies.

Yeah, Patrick's way of I guess teaching me on the clay court, I think we've gotten a lot better at defense. I think my defense has gotten better, my movement. But I talked to him after my last match against Stearns. I think I could have been a lot more aggressive. So we're going to try something different this tournament.

Oh, yeah, I know I'm playing Badosa? Yeah (smiling). Yeah, I think, you know, I was supposed to play her in Rome but she was injured, so I didn't get to play her, but I was really looking forward to it because I know she's a good player, and it's kind of crazy that we have both been on tour but we haven't played each other yet. I know that she's supposed to be a good clay court player also.

I don't know. For me, slams are the best tournaments. There is only four of them, and I feel like that's where everyone plays the best, and that's where everyone kind of feels all the energy. So it's going to be really exciting.

Of course I think I'm going to be nervous because it is the first round, and I'm always nervous in the first round. Hopefully they'll put us on a really good court.