Naomi Osaka will play in her next Grand Slam as a mother.
The tennis star and her boyfriend, the rapper Cordae, have welcomed their first child, a girl, in Los Angeles, according to People. Both mother and daughter are reportedly “doing well.”
Cordae had unofficially revealed the news during a concert last weekend, telling the audience his daughter, named Shai, was born a couple days prior. Osaka revealed her child would be a girl last month:
Osaka first announced her pregnancy in January after surprisingly dropping out of the 2023 Australian Open, pledging to return in time for the 2024 Australian Open. Her daughter arriving in July will give her five months to prepare and train before that tournament is scheduled to begin.
Even before she revealed the pregnancy, Osaka’s career was on something of a hiatus. The four-time Grand Slam champion hadn’t competed in an event since the previous September, when she had to pull out of the 2022 Toray Pan Pacific Open in September due to abdominal pain. Before that, she had only won two full-length matches since reaching the final of the 2022 Miami Open in April while struggling with injuries.
Osaka’s last WTA-sanctioned tournament win remains the 2021 Australian Open.
Despite those struggles, Osaka remains a power player in the world of business. She was named the world’s highest-paid athlete by Forbes last year with an estimated $59.2 million in 2022 income. Her portfolio includes a stake in the NWSL’s North Carolina Courage, a skincare line, a media company partnered with LeBron James and her own sports agency.
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