Nick Kyrgios’ former coach left shocked by one stat he’s seen about Naomi Osaka this season 

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Naomi Osaka has been a class above in Montreal, reminding fans why she’s a four-time Grand Slam champion.

The Japanese star recently made a big coaching switch, as Osaka replaced Patrick Mouratoglou with Tomasz Wiktorowski.

Her decision paid dividends immediately, as Osaka took down Ariana Arsenault, Liudmila Samsonova, Jelena Ostapenko, Anastasija Sevastova, and Elina Svitolina en route to the Canadian Open semifinals.

There, Osaka defeated Clara Tauson in straight sets, 6-2, 7-6, qualifying for her fifth career WTA 1000 final, and her first since 2022.

As Osaka prepares to play home-favorite Victoria Mboko in the final, Nick Kyrgios’ former coach has reacted to a ‘surprising’ statistic about her.

Simon Rea was shocked to see Naomi Osaka lead the WTA Tour for first serve points won in 2025

During the latest episode of ‘The Tennis’, Kyrgios‘ former coach, Simon Rea, reacted to a statistic he saw recently.

“I was having a look at the data and I was probably surprised,” he said.

“The player on serve that is number one on tour in terms of first serve points won, is Naomi Osaka, over the last 52 weeks.

“So when she lands her first serve in play, nobody wins more points behind their first serve than Naomi Osaka.

“I would have had [Aryna] Sabalenka up there, [Coco] Gauff up there, [Madison] Keys up there. Those are the players who jump off the page, so I was surprised to see that.

“That was one thing that jumped off the page to me. Number one on tour for first serve points won.”

Rea proceeded to comment on the ’emotional’ journey Osaka has taken in Montreal, reaching the final against all odds.

“I have just been really taken by the numbers but also the emotional story here,” he said.

“The change in coach, so the splitting of [Patrick] Mouratoglou post Wimbledon, and then doesn’t hesitate. There was no messing around to pick up [Tomasz] Wiktorowski, Iga Swiatek’s previous coach.

“These are the fine margins that we so often see in elite sport. She finds herself in the early rounds in Montreal against Liudmila Samsonova, and they were 2-2 coming in [in the head-to-head], and I watched their match in Berlin on the grass just a couple of months ago, where Samsonova prevailed over Osaka in a tight battle.

“So this is fine margins, not much in this contest. But she finds a way past her, 6-3 in the third, and since then, she has started to steamroll.

“She has gone past [Jelena] Ostapenko, she has given up one game vs [Anastasija] Sevastova and beaten [Elina] Svitolina two and two. That is one-way traffic.”

Naomi Osaka’s route to the Canadian Open final

• 1R – Naomi Osaka defeated Ariana Arsenault, 6-4, 6-2 (6 games dropped)
• 2R – Naomi Osaka defeated Liudmila Samsonova, 4-6, 7-6, 6-3 (15 games dropped)
• 3R – Naomi Osaka defeated Jelena Ostapenko, 6-2, 6-4 (6 games dropped)
• 4R – Naomi Osaka defeated Anastasija Sevastova, 6-1, 6-0 (1 game dropped)
• QF – Naomi Osaka defeated Elina Svitolina, 6-2, 6-2 (4 games dropped)
• SF – Naomi Osaka defeated Clara Tauson, 6-2, 7-6 (8 games dropped)

Having played as well as she has in Montreal, some have suggested Osaka is back to her best, and Rea agrees.

Simon Rea believes there are signs that Naomi Osaka is ‘back to her best’

The 43-year-old continued on to share his thoughts on whether Osaka is playing at her peak level.

“There are signs there that she is back to her best,” said Rea.

“I think it’s pretty close to it. All of a sudden, I think when you track back over time, this is the first time since 2022 she is going to find herself in the semis or better of a 1000-level event.

“I actually think her momentum has been building. It hasn’t been disastrous. It still takes a hell of an effort to beat this woman, and these are the fine margins.

“This is where I’m looking at this Samsonova contest in Montreal and thinking maybe that’s the moment and the time where the pendulum swung the other way, and she is going to build on that.

“Who knows what the ceiling is. This week springs into Cincinnati, springboards into the US Open, where we know she has played great before, and all of a sudden it’s a different conversation again.”

Osaka would no doubt love to pick up a fifth major title at Flushing Meadows next month, but will be cautious of getting ahead of herself, as she first turns her attention to the Canadian Open final.

The 27-year-old will play Canadian teenager Mboko for the title on Thursday, August 7.