If you exhibit your dogs, imagine competing for Best of Breed against your breed’s top ranked, multiple Best in Show dog (a dog you actually like) – and winning!

That must have been what it was like when in 2018, Naomi Osaka defeated her idol, 23-time major champion, Serena Williams,  to become the first Japanese player to win a Grand Slam singles tournament. Born in Japan to a Haitian father and a Japanese mother, Naomi and her older sister, Mari Osaka, also a tennis pro, are sometimes loosely compared to Venus and Serena Williams possibly because early on, their father was inspired to teach his daughters how to play tennis by watching the Williams sisters compete, and mimicking how Richard Williams trained his daughters to become two of the best players in the world.  He once remarked that, “The blueprint was already there. I just had to follow it,” in reference to the detailed plan Richard Williams had developed for his daughters.

Described as shy, honest, polite, and self-deprecating, Osaka is the reigning champion in women’s singles at the Australian Open, and has been ranked No. 1 by the Women’s Tennis Association making her the first Asian player to hold the top ranking in singles. An aggressive playing style with a killer serve that can reach 125 miles per hour is part of her talent, though admirers (like Chris Evert) have said, “There are a few adjustments you have to make when you reach number one. She’s still young…and she still has the game to go all the way, but it might take a little bit of time.”

At only twenty two years of age,  time is on Osaka’s side, and she has support to help her on the road to greatness, probably none more welcomed than the companionship of “Panda,” Osaka’s dog which we strongly believe is a Border Collie. It’s a good fit for a world class tennis player, don’t you think?

Image from Mari Oska’s Facebook page