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Naomi Osaka shares first-look photos of daughter Shai

Originally posted on Tennis on ClutchPoints
By Autumn Hawkins | Last updated Jan 2, 2025 9:39 PM ET

Naomi Osaka reminisced about her 2024, which included adorable photos of her daughter Shai. The tennis star shared several photos of Shai watching TV, overlooking a tennis court as Osaka holds her as well as another shot of them sitting on a pier.

“2024 wrap but it’s pics of me and the cutest girl in the world,” Osaka captioned the since-deleted post per PEOPLE.

In December 2023, the athlete spoke to InStyle to share the difficulties she had while giving birth. Osaka was in labor for 12 hours and learned that she had developed Group B streptococcus — a bacterial infection that can affect newborns resulting in positive tests for meningitis or sepsis.

“I don’t think people know how hard pregnancy is; no one really talks about it as much,” she told the outlet. “Going into it, you kind of think, ‘Oh, it’s this beautiful journey.’ But it’s kind of rough.”

When it was time to give birth, she remembered the doctor telling her that she had to push her baby out fast.

“I do remember feeling in that moment, This is the worst pain of my life,” Osaka says. “And I know that if I get through this, then everything else will feel very easy.

Osaka shares her daughter with her boyfriend, rapper Cordae. The couple have been dating since 2019.

Naomi Osaka announces she will publish a book

Naomi Osaka Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Last year, Osaka announced that she has a book in the works and shared an excerpt on Instagram after teasing it on Threads.

“Growing up I never liked myself,” she began in the Instagram post. “While that statement is bold, I also wouldn’t say I disliked myself either. It was a strange contradiction of thought, I was existing but I didn’t have a strong emotion or opinion tied to my being whether positive or negative.”

She continued, “Comparison is the thief of joy. When I was a teenager I used to compare myself to other people a lot. Whether it was from being a stereotypical teenage girl and thinking my body wasn’t conventionally attractive because I’m an athlete, or comparing myself to other tennis players and thinking I’m behind.”

The tennis star noted that while she struggled with her self-image, there were also times she was just excited to get through the day.

“If felt like the more I preserved through rough times the more I began to appreciate myself and in that way started a strong comradeship between my body and my mind. I began to feel grateful every day when I woke up,” she added.

Since posting her excerpt online, she has not updated fans on what exactly the book will entail and when — or if — the book will be released. She has since taken down her post.

This article first appeared on Tennis on ClutchPoints and was syndicated with permission.

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