Naomi Osaka left shocked after hearing what Victoria Mboko has previously said about her

Naomi Osaka is into her first Masters 1000 final since 2022, having just beaten Clara Tauson to maintain her winning run.

It has been a sensational week for the Japanese tennis star, brushing aside all in her way in a return to form that has felt inevitable ever since she returned to the tour.

Alas, such consistency has evaded her for too long, leading to a few emotional press conferences where she questioned her place within the sport.

To go from being the outright best player in the world to just another one of those scrambling for seeded spots must have been a shock to the system, but with this Canadian Open triumph, regardless of how the final goes, Naomi Osaka must take so much heart from her performances.

This has coincided with Osaka’s recent split from coach Patrick Mouratoglou, having spent the last week working with Iga Swiatek’s old coach, Tomasz Wiktorowski.

Now, she has the unenviable task of trying to topple the young hometown hero, Victoria Mboko, in the final.

Speaking about the Canadian teenager, Osaka first gave her thoughts on the match-up.

After all, it pits Mboko’s youth against the successful experience of her elder, making for an interesting dynamic.

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Osaka began by admitting: “I mean, honestly, I’m not really thinking about it too much right now. I’m just trying to, I guess, recover as best as I can.

“Then obviously I watched her play today, because they were the match in front of us. I thought it was really impressive how she stayed calm. I don’t know if she had a match point down. She did? Yeah. Obviously, that’s really impressive for an 18-year-old. 18? Yeah.

“So it’s really cool I guess that she’s doing this at her home tournament.”

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One reporter then sought to bring up an old interview of Mboko’s where she spoke about Osaka. “Oh god,” was the instant reply from the 27-year-old.

She then reacted to being told that she was idolised by the 18-year-old, continuing: “I don’t think that’s ever happened. I’m shook (laughing). No, I mean, it’s really cute. I guess I have to have a really good attitude tomorrow. I can’t let her not like me anymore.

“I don’t know, it’s funny because I was, like, I see her on the TV, and I was low-key, like, That’s my little twin, because we both have our blue dresses and our buns and everything.

“Yeah, I mean, I’m really honoured. I always said that I would love to play someone that looked up to me in a way, so it’s happening way sooner than I thought it would.”

Naomi Osaka puts together first winning run since her last Grand Slam title

It feels like, since Osaka returned to the tour in 2024, she has never really returned to the level she once boasted.

And with good reason, given the huge changes that giving birth has to any person’s body, let alone a professional athlete.

However, it seemed her winning mentality and unrelenting desire to be the best had perhaps placed too high an expectation on how fast her return to the top should have been.

As such, this created pressure which she did not need, and has not helped her in that task.

Only now, after seemingly playing without expectation, have we finally begun to see her find consistency alongside her unbridled talent.

This marks the first time that Osaka has put together six straight WTA wins since her last Grand Slam title in 2021. It certainly marks the perfect time for her to recapture this form, ahead of the US Open: an event where she already boasts two titles.

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