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Two-time U.S. Open champion Naomi Osaka Talks about how working with her ballet coach prevents her from having another “meltdown” on the court.
The 26-year-old, who won the title here in 2018 and 2020, missed the entire 2023 tournament after giving birth to her daughter Shai last July, returning to Flushing Meadows as a wildcard.
Since 2022, Naomi Osaka has only won two Grand Slam singles matches French Open But earlier this year she revealed Simone Elliott had joined her team.
Elliott is a dancer and choreographer who currently serves as Osaka’s movement coach and mental coach. The tennis star has been learning ballet and how to control her emotions on the court.
“I’m really grateful to her. We write in journals a lot and she was actually the one who told me to take out the little journal that I sometimes read on the court,” Osaka revealed on Saturday.
Two-time US Open champion Naomi Osaka is currently working with ballet dancer Simone Elliott
The dancer and choreographer serves as Naomi Osaka’s movement coach and mental coach
“I remember the day before the qualifying match in Cincinnati, I was having a really hard time, and an hour before the match, I asked her if I could talk to her.
“We talked about it. Obviously I won the game and I felt good afterwards. I’ve had my moments on the pitch where I’ve had meltdowns.
“I felt like if I didn’t talk to her, that moment would have probably happened again.”
Osaka will face No. 10 seed Jelena Ostapenko in an anticipated first-round clash between two Grand Slam champions.
“I made a promise to myself that I would believe in myself as much as possible,” Osaka said.
“Whenever I step foot here, I don’t think about the two tournaments I won. I just think about how I felt when I was a kid because I literally grew up here and I have such vivid memories of watching my favorite players play.”
Osaka recalled watching players such as Rafael Nadal and the Williams sisters, adding: “It was more like a childhood nostalgia and I really enjoyed it.”
“I’m really grateful to her,” Naomi Osaka said before returning to the U.S. Open after two years.
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