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ROLAND GARROS

May 25, 2016

Naomi Osaka

Paris, France

N. OSAKA/M. Lucic-Baroni

6-3, 6-3

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. How happy are you with that result?
NAOMI OSAKA: I mean, I have never played this tournament before, and I'm kind of happy to win two rounds.

Q. What was the strategy of today's match?
NAOMI OSAKA: Well, going into the match, I knew she was a hard hitter, so basically I was just trying to be consistent and not really let the fact that she was going to hit winners bother me.

Q. Now that you're into the third round of the French Open, do you feel like a true dirt baller at this point?
NAOMI OSAKA: I think if I somehow make it into the second week, then I'll start feeling a bit more confident.

Q. So that's pretty good. First time, third round.
NAOMI OSAKA: Yeah, thank you.

Q. You're playing Halep next. How do you look ahead to that match? You didn't know?
NAOMI OSAKA: No, no, I did. Nobody asked me that yet.

I don't know. It's going to be really fun. Because she's someone I have watched on the TV a lot. So, I don't know, it's the same thing as Australian Open, I play someone big in the third round and I'll try to have fun.

Q. What kind of stuff do you feel you learned from the Australian Open experience that you feel can maybe help you out in the next match?
NAOMI OSAKA: Well, did I learn anything? Okay. I don't know. Not to freak myself out, I guess. That's basically it. I don't know. Sorry.

Q. How does your sister take your success? I know you two have quite the rivalry.
NAOMI OSAKA: We had a roasting battle yesterday.

Q. How did that go?
NAOMI OSAKA: I think I won, because I kept -- this is not going to make sense. But basically we were like dissing each other, and so I just kept posting pictures of her, like the most unflattering pictures ever.

Then after a while she stopped responding. I think I hurt her feelings. But, yeah, we're still like best friends and whatever.

Q. Back to your tennis, you have had quite a lot of success this year. Do you think that's just a result of getting older and more experienced on the tour, or have you set yourself some goals that you're really going for?
NAOMI OSAKA: Yeah, I think because I'm 18 now and I don't really have to be picky, and also, I have been more aware of what I'm doing, and I have been having goals, like I was just trying to be in the top 100 for this year, but now I did it already, so I changed my goal, like little things, like tweaking and stuff.

Q. Will you share your next goal with us?
NAOMI OSAKA: Top 75. (Laughter.) Is that weird?

Q. Usually hear top 50...
NAOMI OSAKA: Yeah, yeah, yeah, but now I have to go through this tournament hopefully and then after that I gotta be more specific.

Q. Lucic-Baroni is such a experienced player. What did you take from this match? Maybe you learned something from how she played.
NAOMI OSAKA: Yeah, I have, because -- I don't know. I learn stuff from every time I play and every person I play is different. But if you're asking me specifically what I learned today, really, I wasn't really paying attention that much. I was just focusing on me. So I'm sorry I didn't really learn anything.

Q. Are you comfortable with the clay court right now? And also, today's match like hard hit, hit, hit, and like hard court, hard court match, today's match is like a hard court match. You hit hard. She hit hard. Are you comfortable with clay court and do you have some special feeling on the clay?
NAOMI OSAKA: Well, this whole season for me wasn't the best. But I guess I'm adjusting to it right now, which honestly, I'd rather do better in this tournament than maybe like a smaller tournament.

I know that she was a hard hitter, and I didn't think that I was hitting that hard. I was just kind of replying to how she was hitting. So, yeah.

Q. I want to ask you more like a specific thing, which is about your footwork. So clay, you are required to play at some specific way on the clay court, especially like footwork, sliding. Today your opponent hit like some dropshots, and you managed to return it pretty well. So could you talk about footwork specifically, footwork on the clay court?
NAOMI OSAKA: I don't really change anything, because I slide on hard court, too.

But I know I have to move more, because there is more balls that are going to be in play. But other than that...

Q. In Australia you were talking about being star struck seeing Serena and others around. Now that you have been around the big tournaments, are you used to that now or are you still having moments when you see one of those top players?
NAOMI OSAKA: Well, I'm used to it more now, but I haven't really seen Serena that often. Which I don't know if I'm sad or happy, because then I don't have to like be all freaked out. But then I kind of want to see her, you know. But, yeah, I'm kind of used to it now.

Q. Speaking of Serena, you always wanted to play her. In Australia you looked a little bit disappointed to find out that you don't have an opportunity to play against Serena until like a semifinals or something. I was wondering this year when the draw came out, did you watch where Serena is and did you find that opportunity to play against Serena?
NAOMI OSAKA: Well, she's all the way on the other side of the draw. Like she's always at the very top. Then I saw my name wasn't there, and I was like, ah. I got over it kind of quickly. Was that it?

Q. What was your reaction when you found that you don't have an opportunity to play her until the final?
NAOMI OSAKA: Disappointment? But then I'm like, okay, so maybe I have a chance to win my rounds then. Yeah.

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