Naomi Osaka advances in Rome as comeback continues

On the heels of collecting her first tournament title since becoming a mother, former world No. 1 Naomi Osaka rallied to victory Thursday in the third round of the Italian Open tennis tournament in Rome.

Osaka dropped the first set to Switzerland’s Viktorija Golubic, but came back for a 2-6, 7-5, 6-1 win.

Last week in Saint-Malo, France, Osaka rode a wild-card entry in the WTA 125 tournament to her first title since the 2021 Australian Open – and did it on arguably her worst surface.

“That’s one of my favorite things about life though, there’s always room to grow and evolve,” she wrote in a post on X.

Kinda ironic to win my first trophy back on the surface that I thought was my worst. That’s one of my favorite things about life though, there’s always room to grow and evolve. Thanks to everyone accompanying me on this journey, I know it’s turbulent but it’s also really fun and… pic.twitter.com/oR5OY5pTJN

— NaomiOsaka大坂なおみ (@naomiosaka) May 4, 2025

Osaka, 27, returned to playing competitively at the start of last year after giving birth to a daughter in July 2023.

With the win, the four-time Grand Slam champion saw her world ranking jump to No. 48 in the May 5 update.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Naomi Osaka rallies to victory in Italian Open’s third round