Naomi Osaka admits she's still struggling with an abdominal strain but the dual Australian Open champion is feeling upbeat about her chances in this year's major.
The former world No.1 was forced to withdraw from the Auckland Classic final last week after winning the first set 6-4 against Denmark's Clara Tauson.
Osaka said the result of an MRI scan "wasn't fantastic" but she was adamant she would be able to play her Open first round match against Caroline Garcia, which is a repeat of their 2024 round one meeting won by the French star 6-4 7-6 (7-2).
"The MRI, it wasn't fantastic but it wasn't bad at the same time, so saying all that, I'm pretty optimistic about playing my match," Osaka said on Friday.
"I mean, for sure I'm going to play my match.
"I've been practising pretty well for the two days that I've been here, so it seems to be going good."
Last year's tournament was Osaka's first major since giving birth to her daughter Shai and she said she felt like it was a case of "hopes and dreams".
But with a new coach in former Serena Williams mentor Patrick Mouratoglou, and a new mindset, the Japanese superstar felt positive about her chances of adding to her Open titles won in 2021 and 2019.
The Auckland decider was her first WTA final in almost three years while she's climbed the rankings to world No.50.
"My mindset now is probably the most clear it's been in a very long time," Osaka said.
"Obviously I did pretty well in Auckland - like, I know I lost, debatably lost, in the final but in my head I kind of won it.
"For me, that's definitely a new career stat because I've only ever been to the semis in tournaments before this one so I'm really excited to play here.
"I'm also excited to be here with Patrick because we technically haven't lost yet so yeah, it's going to be a good run I think."
