PERTH, Jan 1 — An excited Naomi Osaka will lean on family ties as she leads Japan in Friday’s opening day at the United Cup in Australia, kicking off her season with a testing clash against former world number three Maria Sakkari.

Four-time Grand Slam champion Osaka, who won Australian Open titles in 2019 and 2021, said she was taking inspiration from her two-and-a-half-year-old daughter Shai as she began the new year.