"One thing I'm looking forward to is for my kid to watch one of my matches and tell someone, 'that's my mom,'ahaha": Osako after pregnancy announcement

Brad Gilbert, former coach of Andre Agassi, believes that Naomi Osaka can still win major tournaments after her pregnancy.

The Japanese tennis player has been one of the most successful players in the last five years, winning four Grand Slam titles and two WTA 1000s, as well as reaching the number 1 spot in the world rankings.

However, since her withdrawal from the French Open in 2021 and her subsequent comments about mental health issues, Osaka has not enjoyed the same level of success as in previous years and has been absent from many tournaments, causing her to drop outside the top 50 in the rankings.

Earlier this year, Naomi Osaka announced that she was pregnant and would not be playing for the rest of the season, leading to speculation that she might return to the tour in 2024 in Australia. She would return without a ranking and would need to obtain wildcards to try and return to the top ranks.

"I know that I have so much to look forward to in the future, one thing I'm looking forward to is for my kid to watch one of my matches and tell someone, 'that's my mom,'ahaha. 2023 will be a year that'll be full of lessons for me and I hope I'll see you guys in the start of the next one cause I'll be at Aus 2024," commented Osaka on her Instagram.

Brad Gilbert spoke on The Craig Shapiro Tennis Podcast and said that the former world No.1 still has chances of returning to the tour successfully.

"We've seen some players come back after having a baby. I think she has the skillset to be able to come back. It's just finding that love and balance for being there. I think if she can find all of that, I think she can easily get back in the top three in the world and win Majors again," Gilbert said.

Naomi Osaka's last appearance was at the Pan Pacific Open, where she retired in the second round against Brazilian player Beatriz Haddad Maia due to injury.