Naomi Osaka teams with Nick Kyrgios and NFL superstar Patrick Mahomes to invest in new Major League Pickleball team in Miami

Japanese tennis superstar Naomi Osaka and Nick Kyrgios are set to join the bandwagon of tennis personalities investing in sister-sport pickleball and its big league, the Major League Pickleball (MLP), according to the latest reports.

Osaka and Kyrgios are said to have joined Patrick Mahomes in the ownership group of the new MLP team. The team will be based in Miami and will make its debut in the league in the 2023 season.

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MLP is set to double in size next season, going from 12 to 24 teams, which also includes another new team with Belgian tennis great Kim Clijsters and NFL legend Tom Brady in the ownership group. Other superstar team owners in the league include LeBron James, Kevin Durant, and Drew Bees.

As per Forbes, Osaka, Kyrgios, and Mahomes are said to co-own the Miami-based team with billionaires Soichiro Minami and Matthew Pritzker, as well as NBA agent Rich Paul. While the valuation of the team and the size of the investments, particularly from the dynamic tennis duo, are unknown, the league's expansion fee is believed to be in the range of $1 million - 3 million.

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Former World No.1 Osaka continues to invest in promising businesses in the world of sports as well as outside of it. The four-time Grand Slam champion has been ranked the world's highest-paid female athlete for three consecutive years now.

Osaka was ranked No. 19 on Forbes' list of the world's highest-paid athletes in 2022 with total pre-tax earnings of $59.2 million. She and Serena Williams (No. 31) were the only two women athletes in the Top-50.