Naomi Osaka shares wholesome moment with teary-eyed fan holding tennis star’s Barbie doll

Naomi Osaka has shared heartwarming footage of her emotional moment with a fan at the 2024 Miami Open.

The 26-year-old tennis champion competed at this year’s Miami Open, but her streak came to an end this week after she was defeated by Caroline Garcia during Sunday’s match. Despite her loss, Osaka didn’t go home empty handed. In fact, she was treated to a hug from a teary-eyed fan.

In a video posted to Osaka’s TikTok, the four-time Grand Slam singles champion was seen meeting fans on the sidelines after the tennis match had ended. Set to an audio clip from the Barbie movie and Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?”, Osaka greeted a fan who was holding the athlete’s signature Barbie doll - which was released by Mattel in 2021.

The mother of one instantly gave him a hug and signed one of her wrist sweatbands to give to him, which caused the fan to immediately burst into tears. “Thank you for all of the support throughout the years,” Osaka wrote over the TikTok video. “I love and appreciate you all so much.”

In the caption of her TikTok post, she simply wrote: “Thank you,” with a smiling face with tear emoji.

Many fans took to the comments section to gush over the emotional moment, and pointed out how he was holding Osaka’s Barbie doll while meeting the athlete in-person.

“To watch these young boys look up to a woman athlete is magical and I’m here for it,” one TikTok user commented.

“He met his real life Barbie,” another person said.

“Not me sobbing at this video,” a third user wrote, while another commented: “This was so pure. His eyes were filled with so much awe and joy.”

Back in 2021, the parent company for Barbie released Osaka’s very own doll just ahead of her appearance at the Tokyo Olympics, where she represented Japan. Mattel dressed the Barbie doll in a Nike tennis dress with brushstroke print, inspired by a look the real-life tennis player wore in 2020. The doll is accessorised with a white Nike visor, light blue shoes, and a replica of Osaka’s Yonex tennis racket.

Osaka made her return to professional tennis last January at the Brisbane International in Australia, just six months after she gave birth to her first child. She welcomed her daughter, Shai, with rapper boyfriend Cordae in July 2023.