Tennis superstar Naomi Osaka is expecting her first child and promises a return to the court in 2024

Naomi Osaka will miss the entirety of 2023 after she revealed on social media that she is expecting her first child. She has also promised to return to the Australian Open in 2024.

Former World No. 1 Naomi Osaka took to social media to reveal that she is pregnant and is expecting her first child this year. As a result, she will not be in action on the tennis court throughout this year but has promised to return in 2024.

"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 my matches and tell someone, 'That's my mom' haha," the four-time Grand Slam winner wrote on Twitter, accompanied by a picture of a pregnancy scan.

"2023 will be a year full of lessons for me, and I hope I'll see you guys at the start of the next one cause I will be back at the Australian Open 2024. Love you all infinitely," she further added.

The 25-year-old has been absent from the limelight since September, raising speculations surrounding a possible injury. Her withdrawal from the first Grand Slam tournament of the year, the Australian Open, which begins next week, also surprised many fans and led to questions.

However, Osaka’s most recent life update on Wednesday more than explained her absence.

The 2021 Australian Open champion further wrote that the last few years had been quite interesting but she tends to finds fun when things get challenging. The few months that she spent away from the sport recently had given her a newfound love and appreciation for the sport that she had dedicated her life to.

“I realize that life is so short and I don’t take any moments for granted, everyday is a new blessing and adventure,” she said.

The world of tennis got together to congratulate Osaka on her pregnancy. She received congratulatory messages from  World No. 1 Iga Swiatek, Gael Monfils, Ons Jabeur and Coco Gauff . Meanwhile, former World No. 1s Boris Becker, Martina Navratilova and Kim Clijsters also congratulated the 25-year-old.

2022 was a year of lessons for Naomi Osaka

Osaka had won her last title in Australia in early 2021. In January of that year, she defeated Jennifer Brady in the final to lift her second Australian Open title and added the fourth Grand Slam to her collection.

The 25-year-old had won the Australian Open for the first time in 2019. She also has two US Open titles to her name, winning in 2018 and 2020.

Osaka’s last appearance in tennis was at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo in September. Born in Japan, she was the home favourite by a large stretch and was expected to win the tournament. However, she ended up withdrawing ahead of her second round fixture after complaining of abdominal pain.

She had been the World No. 1 in 2019, but has now fallen to 47^th in the rankings after a prolonged absence and 2022 wasn’t particularly memorable for her on the court either.

Osaka suffered first-round losses at both the French and US Opens and withdrew from Wimbledon with an Achilles injury. She has won just a single completed match since May 2022.

The Japanese-born American tennis star also mentioned that she does plan on returning to the tennis court in 2024.

“I don’t think there’s a perfectly correct path to take in life but I always felt that if you move forward with good intentions you’ll find your way eventually."