Osaka refreshed ahead of new season: "I've never really taken that long of a break before, but I think it was necessary"
Tennis News
Naomi Osaka took part in a feature length interview recently speaking in depth about her off season and working with her new coach.
Osaka got injured before the end of the season and spoke about her rehab admitting that it was great to have fun without having to spend all of her time training.
This saw Osaka go to Turks and Caicos on vacation and not spend all of her time being rigorous on the training front.
"I didn't play for most of November, which was a first for me," Osaka told reporters at WTA All Access Hour in Brisbane. "I've never really taken that long of a break before. But I think it was really necessary because my shoulder was kind of worn down.
"After that I just did rehab and slowly started playing again and I think that that worked out really well; because I don't feel anything in my shoulder, and I like to think that I'm playing well right now. I guess I'll find that out; after I play my match.
"I think the best thing that I did was just have fun," Osaka told WTA Insider. "Because I sort of learned after US Open that I don't really have to train every day for five hours to play well. After the US Open I took the week off; I just flew to Japan without training."
"I just feel like for me having positive energy and having a clean mental slate is really important; so that's what I did this entire off-season. I mean, I trained; but I wasn't super pressed on anything," Osaka added.
"That's just something I had to learn throughout the entire year. I feel like 2019 had so many trials and errors and all in all it felt like a very long year; but now that I'm here it feels very compact. It's learning about myself more. This year there will probably be a lot of things I do wrong; but I just have to learn from it."
Working with Wim Fissette
Osaka is set to work with Wim Fissette for the 2020 season and said that because of his past experience; she is learning with every passing moment.
The Japanese ace though admitted herself that she is not putting pressure on him or herself to play well despite being eager to return to the court.
"[I was looking for] someone that's calm and knowledgeable and can kind of work with the team dynamic, because my trainer, my physio, I've had them for like more than two years and they're like my family at this point," Osaka told reporters. "So I felt like anyone that I brought in now should be able to work well with them.
"I know that he's worked with a lot of top players and I feel like I'm learning from everything that he says, and I try to apply it.
"It's kind of tough because this is the first tournament and in a way, I expect a lot because I want to pick up from where I left off, minus the injury part. And I know that he wants to do really well too, so there's that factor. But at the same time, I don't want to put coach pressure on him."
https://twitter.com/WTA_insider/status/1213733202361110528?s=20
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Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.
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