Naomi Osaka is striving for the form that saw her win four Grand Slam titles and the jury is out on whether she can reach that level again.
The 26-year-old spent 16 months away from the WTA Tour during which she gave birth to her daughter Shai.
Since returning to action in January, she has yet to find the consistency needed to climb back up the rankings and come close to winning another Grand Slam.
But with Osaka now working with Patrick Mouratoglou, she will begin to absorb information from a fresh perspective and will carry on trying to find her best level of tennis.
Does Annabel Croft think Naomi Osaka can win more Grand Slams and return to the World number one ranking?
Naomi Osaka has made just two quarter-final appearances since coming back to play in January and is currently ranked just inside the world’s top 75.
The four-time Grand Slam champion has shown glimpses of what she is truly capable of but so far, it has not been seen anywhere near enough for a player who wants to win a major again.
This is why Croft said during Osaka’s China Open match with Yulia Putintseva that in her current form, she is some distance from winning at the highest level of tennis again.
“I was looking back on some of the statements she made not so long ago and she had very high expectations,” Croft said while committing for Sky Sports.
“I don’t think she’d be playing if she didn’t think she could win a Slam, but I think she is a long way off from that. The fact is she is here competing, she wants to get her tennis back together.
“It’s not by luck that she’s won four, so I think it wouldn’t take much to flick the switch and get her back on track. But it’s not going to be easy, there are a lot of other players coming through.”
Which Grand Slams has Naomi Osaka won?
Osaka is the owner of four Grand Slam titles, all of which have come on hard courts.
The first came at the 2018 US Open when Osaka was just 20 years of age. She overcame an irate Serena Williams and the New York crowd to secure a 6-2, 6-4 victory.
Osaka won the very next major, which was the 2019 Australian Open. She needed three sets to win four of her seven matches, including the semi-final and final against the Czech pair of Karolina Pliskova and Petra Kvitova respectively.
The player’s next win at major came at the 2020 US Open, which was played without any fans due to the coronavirus pandemic. Osaka lost the first set against Victoria Azarenka in the final, but battled back to claim her third Grand Slam.
Osaka completed the US Open and Australian Open double for the second time as she defeated Serena on the way to winning her fourth major at Melbourne Park in 2021.
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