Osaka disappointed after defeat to teenage sensation Gauff: "You don't want to lose to a 15-year old"

Saturday, 25 January 2020 at 17:30

Naomi Osaka, defending Australian Open champion lost to Coco Gauff in a victory which saw the latter show experience beyond her years to dump out the Japanese ace.

Osaka reflected afterwards and was understandably disappointed but not due to losing her title; but because of the age of her opponent.

“This one hurts a little bit more,” she admitted afterwards.

“It’s just tough. I love her, but I don't like this feeling of losing to her. You don't want to lose to a 15-year-old. I think it's because I have an age problem. I don't like losing to people that are younger than me, and there is hardly (any) people that are younger than me. I took this very personally.”

For Osaka, she added that she has to go back to the drawing board after the defeat and work even harder.

As well, she gave a word about her team and for Osaka, it adds to the disappointment that she couldn't deliver the end goal for them.

“I don't really have the champion mentality yet,” she mused. “Which is someone that can deal with not playing 100 per cent. I have always wanted to be like that, but I guess I still have a long way to go. It's just something that I think some people are born with, and some people have to have really hard trials and stuff to get it.”

“I feel bad for my entire team,” she said. “We came here to win the tournament, and I'm sort of the vessel that everyone's hard work is put into. And I wasn't able to do what I was supposed to do. And also my dad and my mom were here, so that kind of hurts more.”

Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief

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.

Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.

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