Naomi Osaka has long been a hard court champion who treated grass as a short interruption, but 2026 was the season she turned her serve and first strike into real results on the surface. She finished 12th in the women’s GTC Grass Rankings with a rating of 115, up from 113 though three places lower than her preseason 9th as others rose faster.
Grass at a glance
- GTC Grass Rating: 115, 12th in the women’s rankings (9th before the season)
- Pillars: Lawn Form 78, Arsenal 70, Wimbledon 58, Nerve 54
- Nationality: Japan
- Best Wimbledon result: Quarter-final (2026)
- Grass titles: None yet (Bad Homburg runner-up 2026)
- Plays: Right-handed, two-handed backhand
How Naomi plays on grass
On paper Osaka’s game should suit grass. Her first serve is one of the biggest in the women’s game, and when it lands the low bounce makes it even harder to return. Behind it she hits flat, heavy forehands that end points in two or three shots, which is exactly the pattern that wins on a fast court. Her Arsenal pillar of 70 reflects that power.
The limits have been movement and adaptability. Osaka prefers a true, higher bounce, and on grass she has sometimes struggled to stay low and set her feet against players who slice or change pace. She rarely uses the slice herself and comes forward mostly to finish. In 2026, with Tomasz Wiktorowski as coach since mid-2025, she looked more willing to absorb the awkward ball and wait for the right moment to attack. Her Nerve score of 54 is moderate: she won big matches at Wimbledon but has not yet closed out a grass final.
Grass record
Before 2026 her grass record was modest. She reached the third round of Wimbledon in 2017 and 2018, lost in the first round in 2019 and did not play the Championships from 2021 to 2023. On her return she reached the second round in 2024 and the third round in 2025. She had never played a grass court final.
The 2026 grass season
Bad Homburg brought her first grass final, and her first tour-level final on any surface other than hard courts. She faced Karolina Muchová but retired after losing the first set 6-1 with a problem in her left foot, leaving her fitness for Wimbledon in doubt. Her rating stayed at 113.
The foot held up. Seeded 14th at Wimbledon, she beat Elsa Jacquemot, the qualifier Anastasia Gasanova and Daria Kasatkina to reach the fourth round for the first time, then beat the world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka to reach a first Wimbledon quarter-final. Muchová beat her there, as she had in Bad Homburg, and went on to reach the final, which Linda Nosková won. The fortnight moved Osaka’s rating from 113 to 115.
Looking ahead to 2027
Osaka has now shown she can win in the second week at Wimbledon, so 2027 is about building on that rather than proving it. A lead-in event such as Bad Homburg suits her because it gives her matches without heavy travel before London, provided the foot problem does not return. The areas to work on are movement to low, wide balls and more variety on return, especially against players like Muchová who can take pace off the ball. A realistic target is a second Wimbledon quarter-final and a first grass title, which would push her into the GTC top 10. For another player who made a grass leap this season, see Alex Eala.
