Naomi Osaka is set to re-enter the Top 100 of the WTA rankings thanks to her first Wimbledon main draw win since 2018.
The Japanese star overcame a determined Diane Parry in her opening match at the Championships on Monday 6-1, 1-6, 6-4 on Court 2. The last time she won a match at SW19 was six years ago when she defeated Katie Boulter on her way to the third round.
In fact, at the time, she had not lifted a single Grand Slam and was not ranked as World No. 1. The following year, she suffered a shock first-round loss to Yulia Putintseva and never played at Wimbledon until this year.
Osaka, who took a year off from tennis in 2023 because of pregnancy, was unranked when she rejoined the Tour at the start of the current season. But her results have been progressively getting better, reaching two quarterfinals, one of which was on the grass in Den Bosch.
She was the only player to take a set from Iga Swiatek at this year’s Roland Garros and was unfortunate not to beat the Pole in their second-round match at the end of May after holding a match point.
But with a winning return at Wimbledon, Osaka was delighted to rise into the Top 100 (up to 96th in the live rankings), which was her best ranking after her maternity absence, and told his followers on Instagram that it meant a lot to her.
“GUESS WHO’S BACK IN THE TOP 100.”
“Also yes. This mean a lot to me, probably more this time around.”
The draw will get more challenging from this point. In the second round, Osaka will face her a seeded opponent, the 22-year-old high-flying American Emma Navarro. Given the comparative gulf in experience, it is still a winnable match, and if she navigates that test, she could break the Top 90.
