Osaka says she hasn't had fun playing since Australian Open

maybe shouldnt have dumped your last coach so quickly, he was paramount in getting Osakas mental game as good as her physical one, new coach well his record so far isnt that great.

The kid is in love.

A bad separation from her coach and things quickly went downhill and stayed that way?

Coincidence? I think not.

Ahh, the simplistic mindset. "She got rid of her coach, and she hasn't had fun since, so it MUST be because she got rid of her coach".

I wish I lived in a black and white world like people here.

Well, she said she would choose happiness over winning when she sacked her coach. You'd think she'd be happier and having more fun than ever! Wonder if she's starting to reconsider her decision!

"...I don't want to burden anyone with my thoughts or problems," 

...Tells the whole world about them.

 wish I lived in a black and white world like people here.

change of coach , lot of her time taken away from the game for her sponcers and endorcements, added pressure of being #1 and Japanese, well Japanese while shes winning, halfu while shes losing, etc etc black white and many colors in between, thats the world we live in.

I figured this when she sacked her coach. That relationship was a little more than average coach/player relationship. For which I don't know, but it clearly wasn't a mutual feeling. That awkwardness leads to getting rid of the issue. Probably was the correct move, but getting over that is difficult, couple with not winning a lot etc and this happens. Tennis, as much as golf, is a very mental game and if you're out of it, you won't win. Unfortunately, Osaka seems to be the type that is weak mentally. Quick to blame herself etc etc.. I said it before, but I honestly think winning the U.S Open was a fluke caused by a perfect storm of things. Until she gets the mental aspect down, she won't be #1 again anytime soon.

Man,

She is getting more and more immature as the weeks go by,

She is complaining about being paid millions to play the sport she loves!

Unreal,why doesn't she come 'home' to Japan and get a job in a factory earning less than ¥900 an hour,working 6 days a week and we will see what having fun really means.

You mean, since she fired her coach? ship... sailed. Bed... made.

One of the Japanese guys who loved her last year told me again that "she's not Japanese" (after she was last year, after she wasn't until she won the open). This attitude she's displaying doesn't do her well.

“Serenity now!”

Okay, scatch that. Wrong problem.

(Snaps fingers) “Shoulda had a V8!”

There. Everything is better.

wtfjapan: maybe shouldnt have dumped your last coach so quickly, he was paramount in getting Osakas mental game as good as her physical one

Utter nonsense. This is the default comment everyone goes back to every time Osaka loses. Do you people really think that there was one and only one magic coach who was able to summon the mystical energy into Naomi? If she felt it was appropriate to cut ties with him in the middle of her success, then there was a very good reason for it. And the fact that the new guy's results have been so poor is NOT evidence that the mistake was in firing the old guy. It's only evidence that the hiring of the new guy was the mistake. The old coach wasn't a legendary magician. There are other coaches out there. She needs to find another good one who didn't cause whatever personal problems the old coach did.

You "She shouldn't have fired him!!!" crowd are really just looking for the first, simplest explanation without putting much thought into the full situation.

"One of the Japanese guys who loved her last year told me again that "she's not Japanese" 

And another one I know told me she is Japanese!

So, where do we stand then?

Shes really immature. Im actually a bit worried about her.

Unnecessary belly button gazing, win some, lose some, 21 years old, why so serious?

Go Naomi go! You are so young. You can be stronger than you imagines. Because you're the number one tennis player in the world already. Just you should go your own way!

So, where do we stand then?

shes Japanese and Haitian with American and Japanese nationality

"I haven't had fun playing since the Australian Open."

She's sounds a like an immature millennial. When you're playing to be the best in the world, it's a little more than just "having fun".

"shes Japanese and Haitian with American and Japanese nationality"

I'm well aware of that; someone else appears not to be.

Growing pains. Just because you won two consecutive Slams and shot to number one doesn't mean everything is going to be smooth sailing forever. Some bumps in the road are exactly what's needed. She needed to be brought back down to Earth.

Not fun?

That's why people pay you to do it. That's why a job is called "work."

People pay to do things that are fun.

She shouldn’t let her life be controlled by her mood. Kids do that.

Take a breather. It's nothing some some yoga or meditation classes won't fix. You're young and talented, you have experience, you understand the pressure . . . just focus.