Naomi Osaka’s Brutal Self-Takedown After Wimbledon Loss: “I’m Just Gonna Be a Negative Human Being”

Naomi Osaka failed to progress past the third round at Wimbledon as she was beaten by Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in a three-setter.

Naomi Osaka’s Brutal Self-Takedown After Wimbledon Loss: “I’m Just Gonna Be a Negative Human Being”

Naomi Osaka (image via Wimbledon)

🔍 Explore this post with:

ChatGPTPerplexityGrok AIGoogle AI

On Friday, Naomi Osaka missed out on the chance to reach the fourth round of Wimbledon for the first time in her career as she faced defeat to former quarterfinalist Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Despite a strong start in the first set on Court Two, Osaka struggled to maintain her momentum in the subsequent sets, as the Russian, withstanding 15 aces from her opponent, secured the win with a scoreline of 3-6, 6-4, 6-4. With this victory she leveled her head-to-head record with Osaka to 2-2.

Osaka, who reached the third round of Wimbledon after seven years, was asked if despite the loss, she still sees some positive in the last few weeks and going forward into the season. The former World No. 1 who was devastated by her performance came back with a brutally honest reply:

I’m just gonna be a negative human being today. I’m so sorry. I have nothing positive to say about myself, which is something I’m working on. It was my daughter’s birthday. I was happy about that this week. Other than that, today, I’m just constantly replaying the match.

The only thing that made Osaka happy this week was her daughter’s Shai’s birthday, who turned two. The 27-year-old has lost her last four three-set matches in a row, stretching back to the Italian Open, albeit holding a positive 9-6 record in deciding sets this season.

Osaka is a four-time Grand Slam champion, having triumphed at the US Open in 2018 and 2020, and at the Australian Open in 2019 and 2021. However since her fourth Grand Slam title, Osaka has failed to reach the fourth round of any Grand Slam, or win any titles on the WTA tour. She has only made it to two more tour finals since her triumph in Melbourne over four years ago.

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova will meet Sonay Kartal in the fourth round at Wimbledon

Prior to defeating Naomi Osaka, World No. 50 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova overcame Ajla Tomljanovic and Ashlyn Krueger in her earlier rounds at Wimbledon. The 34-year-old will now meet home hope Sonay Kartal in the fourth round. This upcoming match marks their first meeting on court.

Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova Wimbledon 2025
Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (image via Getty)

Kartal, on the other hand has reached the fourth round of a Grand Slam for the first time in her career. The Brit overcame 20th seed Jeļena Ostapenko, Viktoriya Tomova, and Diane Parry in her earlier rounds at the tournament. After her victory over Osaka, Pavlyuchenkova opened up about her struggles with Lyme disease earlier this year:

It was horrible. I was fatigued, I was very neurotic and irritated. I constantly had headaches- especially in my right temple, it was pressing on my head all the time. I had a brain fog. I would start practicing and couldn’t even see clear sometimes- whenever the heart rate was going up, it was hitting me. I never thought it would be such a nasty disease.

Five months ago, just before the Indian Wells tournament, Pavlyuchenkova was bed-ridden after being diagnosed with this tick-borne bacterial infection. After a tough recovery process and a series of early exits since the Miami Open, Pavlyuchenkova had a breakthrough at the Eastbourne Open, reaching her maiden grass-court semifinal, where she lost to eventual champion Maya Joint.

Also Read: Naomi Osaka Gives Key Suggestion for Alexander Zverev to Battle his Mental Struggles