Career Milestones
Stepping Stones: Naomi Osaka's journey to the top
Naomi Osaka's career milestones as the three-time Grand Slam champion rose to the top of the sport.
01
/13
Although she did not play junior tennis, Osaka grabbed headlines in her WTA debut at Stanford in 2014, where as the World No. 406, she upset Samantha Stosur 4-6, 7-6(7), 7-5 in the first round.
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02
/13
Osaka also made a splash on her Slam debut at the 2016 Australian Open, beating Donna Vekic and Elina Svitolina to reach the third round; two months later, she reached her first WTA quarterfinal in Acapulco and cracked the Top 100 in April 2016.
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03
/13
At Roland Garros 2016, Osaka proved she was a quick learner: in the fourth red clay tournament of her career, she defeated Jelena Ostapenko and stretched Simona Halep - the next two years' champions - to three sets in the third round.
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04
/13
Osaka was gaining a reputation for raising her game at Slams - but in the third round of the 2016 US Open tearful disaster struck as a 5-1 third set lead over Madison Keys dissipated.
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05
/13
Two tournaments later, though, Osaka bounced back to make her maiden final at home in Tokyo, beating Elina Svitolina in the semifinals before falling to Caroline Wozniacki in the final - a result that moved her into the Top 50 for the first time.
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06
/13
There was redemption at the 2017 US Open: returning to the scene of her 'freak out' the previous year, Osaka stunned defending champion Angelique Kerber 6-3, 6-1 in the first round for her maiden Top 10 scalp.
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07
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Osaka transformed from dangerous floater to title threat at Indian Wells 2018, pummelling a succession of former World No.1s and Slam champions to storm to her maiden trophy.
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08
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Osaka followed the Indian Wells run by defeating childhood heroine Serena Williams 6-3, 6-2 in the first round of Miami.
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09
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Five months later, Osaka would reprise that win on the biggest stage, shocking Williams 6-2, 6-4 in the final of the US Open to win her first major - and rocket into the Top 10 for the first time.
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10
/13
A dramatic three-set win over Petra Kvitova in the 2019 Australian Open final sealed consecutive Slam titles for Osaka - and the World No.1 ranking.
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11
/13
Osaka ended 2019 in hot form, picking up a first title on home soil in Osaka and following that with the Beijing trophy - ultimately putting together a 14-match winning streak, the longest of her career to date.
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12
/13
Osaka demonstrated her increasing power and willingness to speak out on social issues by leading the WTA Tour in a Black Lives Matter shutdown at Cincinnati 2020, before wearing masks to honor Black deaths at the hands of the police at the US Open.
Photo by Getty
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