Welcome to the world No. 1 ranking.
Coming off back-to-back grand slam titles and rising to the top spot in the WTA, Naomi Osaka lost her first match Tuesday since firing her coach last week.
The 21-year-old was in tears afterward, explaining how the increased attention — and scrutiny of every move she makes, like parting ways with coach Sascha Bajin — got to her.
“I mean, I couldn’t,” Osaka told reporters, when asked if she could block out the reaction to the news. “This match is the result of that.
“Yeah, I mean, I’m pretty sure, like, you guys — no offense to you guys — but I’m pretty sure as time goes on, you guys will stop talking about it. For now, it’s like the biggest tennis news, I guess. It’s a little bit hard because I feel like people are staring at me, and not like in a good way.”
Osaka lost 6-3, 6-3 to Kristina Mladenovic at the Dubai Championships after having a bye in the first round. She had not played since winning the Australian Open last month. The win was Mladenovic’s first of the year.
Last week, Osaka announced in a tweet she would no longer work with Bajin, leading to speculation that they had fallen out over money. But she disputed those rumors Sunday, saying the reason was not wanting to choose “success over happiness.”
Osaka had neither on Tuesday, instead having to answer questions about dealing with the newfound spotlight.
“I don’t think I necessarily understand what position I’m in, in a way, because last year I wasn’t even anywhere close to this ranking,” Osaka said. “People didn’t pay attention to me. That’s something that I’m comfortable with.
“I don’t know why I’m crying. Yeah. I don’t know why this is happening.”