Naomi Osaka and Emma Raducanu are in contention for a WTA award after being nominated for Comeback Player of the Year.
The WTA released nominations for various awards this week, as it does at the end of each season. In one category, two former Grand Slam champions took their position.
When it comes to Osaka, she missed the full 2023 season owing to a pregnancy. After returning at the start of 2024, the former world number one achieved her greatest result in the WTA 1000 tournament in Doha, reaching the quarterfinals.
While the 27-year-old had a fantastic week in Doha, one aspect of her comeback that tennis fans will remember is her meeting with Iga Swiatek in the French Open second round. In her first Roland Garros as a mother, Osaka came close to becoming the first player since 2021 to beat the Pole in Paris. Unfortunately for the four-time Grand Slam champion, she came up short after wasting a 5-2 third-set lead and a match point. Nonetheless, it was a standout performance that brought back memories of her greatest days.
In October, Osaka advanced to the round of 16 of the WTA 1000 tournament in Beijing, where she led Coco Gauff by a set and a break before retiring due to a back ailment. Unfortunately, the Japanese did not have the opportunity to compete in any other competitions throughout the season. In 2024, she concluded with a 22-18 record and was ranked No. 59.
Raducanu, on the other hand, competed in only five tournaments last year before undergoing wrist and foot surgery in May 2023.
After beginning her comeback in the first week of 2024, the Briton reached her first semifinal since 2022 at Nottingham, where she won her first two top-10 titles, and also advanced to the Wimbledon round of 16, her first second week at a Grand Slam since 2021. In addition, the 22-year-old climbed over 250 ranks in the WTA rankings and will enter 2025 as world No. 58.
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