Less than perfect OK with Osaka heading into French Open

It’s sometimes hard to remember Naomi Osaka is only 23 years old, one year out of college for many her age. But under the global microscope of professional tennis, every loss is noted, every nuance debated ad nauseam in the very public arena of social media.

She has won four of the past eight Grand Slams she’s played, including the past two – all on hardcourts. Her dominance on that immovable, unforgiving surface, has lifted her to the No.2 ranking.

But now comes the clay conundrum. In pre-French Open clay matches over the past five years, she’s middling 13-13. To be fair, it’s an extremely small sample size. Still, she has yet to win a title on clay or grass and has never made it past the third round in Paris.

With Osaka scheduled to take the court at 11 a.m. local when Roland Garros begins Sunday, no one is more aware of this disturbing dichotomy than she is. But a number of athletic and aggressive players, including some of her peers, have found a way to translate their gifts from hardcourts to the natural surfaces. It is an ongoing conversation Osaka has been having with her coach, Wim Fissette, since April. He has vast experience, having coached, among others, Simona Halep, Victoria Azarenka, Kim Clijsters and Sabine Lisicki.

“We’re kind of talking about it every day, but for me I feel like we both established that I’m not going to magically turn into a defensive player,” Osaka said before playing earlier this month in Rome. “I’m not magically going to start hitting my balls like three feet above the net.

“So of course I’m an aggressive player, and that’s what I do. That’s what helps me win. So definitely wouldn’t drastically change my game at all, no.”

The key word is drastically. For Osaka hopes that with a few tweaks she can make progress in her clay aspirations.  

Osaka’s results will be closely monitored. One of those not worried about her ability to master these slippery slopes is Jessica Pegula, who beat her in Rome. This transformation, Pegula recognizes from her own experience, doesn’t come quickly.

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“I think she could be good,” Pegula said. “She has a good forehand, a good serve. I mean that’s a big part of playing on clay. She’s a good athlete and I think it’s just finding her comfort level.

“It’s kind of like what [Aryna] Sabalenka said when she won Madrid. She was afraid of it, too, but I think she just accepted it and realized, you know, she worked on her movement and stuff like that. So I think she’ll be fine. She’s just got to play on it more. And I’m sure she’ll get that confidence at some point.”

A more passive-aggressive approach

The week before in Madrid, Osaka beat qualifier Misaki Doi in the first round before falling to Karolina Muchova – a rising Top 20 player – in the second. The loss to Pegula in Rome featured some negative body language and, at one particularly exasperating moment, a smashed racket.

“I’m always upset at my losses, but I feel like for this one, at the end of the day – how do I explain this?” Osaka said afterward, pausing. “Like I feel like other people were more upset than me, because they look at the result and not like what happened during the match or how I fought and stuff like that.

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“At the end of the day I’m the one that has to live with myself and only I know how much time and how much practice I put in before that match. So I feel like it’s one of those things that I’m gauging myself, like, how I’m improving and how I’m getting better.”

The classic story of clay capitulation is Maria Sharapova. She won her first major on the grass at Wimbledon at 17 and followed it up with wins on the hard surfaces at the US Open (2006) and Australian Open (2008). No one, least of all Sharapova, saw her evolving into a certified Dirt Master.

In a remarkable four-year span, she reached the semifinals at Roland Garros in 2011, won a year later, made the final the following year and won again in 2014 for her fifth and final Grand Slam singles title. Those victories came at the relatively advanced ages of 25 and 27, suggesting that Osaka has time to adapt.

Clay requires an almost passive-aggressive approach. After her first match in Madrid, her first on clay in two years, Osaka detailed her frustration.

“The first two days that I was training this year with Wim, I was very irritated, actually, just because I’m used to coming back and kind of feeling the ball and not feeling like I have been away for a bit.

“You have to adjust your feet in a different way. The bad bounces are definitely really troubling. I try to play my natural way. I would say if I start thinking about grinding too much, I become a bit of a pusher and it’s not really good for me. Of course, I’m not a professional clay-court player, but I think on clay court it’s definitely a bit more important to hit when you can.”

Less than perfect is OK

Familiarity doesn’t always breed contempt.

Most European players grew up playing on clay and sliding into shots and navigating bad bounces has become second nature.

“I'm not sure if I should be telling you this,” Osaka said in Madrid, “but I’m just not that comfortable on it still, and I’m not sure if it’s because I need to play longer on it or if I just haven’t grown up on it.

“But I think as soon as I get that sort of block out of my mind, then I’ll be more open to the mistakes. I'll be more open to the bad bounces and stuff like that.

“So as of right now, I’m taking everything as a learning process, and I’m trying not to be so hard on myself.”

Osaka did not follow the conventional path of international junior events, which include clay and grass tournaments. And while she usually played a handful of clay and grass events each year coming up, the majority were on hardcourts. Ultimately, her game is probably more conducive to success on grass.

Halep, cavorting about on the natural surfaces, is a joy to behold. Sprint, slide, swing and hit – it’s what she does best – and it has brought her a title at Roland Garros (2018) and Wimbledon (2019). Osaka often hits the ball as she begins her slide and, as a result, has to complete her slide before scrambling back to a neutral position on the court. This allows her less time to recover.

Thus, improved movement on clay has been a priority for Osaka. She’s spent time with Japanese trainer Yutaka Nakamura, who has worked with Sharapova and, in his earlier days, Kei Nishikori. What, specifically, have they been up to?

“The kind of training we’ve been doing?” she asked coyly in Madrid. “I don’t know if I’m supposed to be exposing him and his secrets. I would say it’s more like mobility and sliding, like clay-court specific.

“I did a lot with Yutaka, like sliding and not really weights but more body weight things. I think he definitely really helped me out a lot.”

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Osaka, despite a 1-2 clay record in Madrid and Rome, will continue to try and think positive thoughts.

“I feel all in all like I’m learning a lot,” she said in Madrid. “I’m able to gauge when I’m being too defensive, but it’s a bit harder on clay court because I feel it comes right on the first ball. So, say, if I were to serve and she hits a return, I would have to immediately be aggressive on that first ball.

“Hopefully the next match that I play I’m able to turn that switch on faster.”