‘I am speechless’: How Naomi Osaka’s jellyfish-inspired Australian Open outfit almost backfired

Two-time champion Naomi Osaka stole the show on her return to the Australian Open with a spectacular walk-on outfit – before she was given a mighty scare by tournament debutant Antonia Ruzic.

Former world No 1 Osaka, who is known for her bespoke costume designs, arrived on court at the Rod Laver Arena with her face covered by a wide-brimmed hat and billowing white veil, while holding a matching parasol. Osaka said the design was inspired by a jellyfish and butterflies, the Japanese star completing the look with flared trousers, which she then removed before her warm-up to reveal another pre-match jacket, this one featuring a vibrant tasselled trim. Her blue-green Nike dress was also jellyfish-inspired.

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At first, Osaka’s first-round opponent, the Croatian Ruzic, ranked 65th in the world, appeared overawed by Osaka’s grand entrance at the pre-match coin toss, her own arrival onto the court completely overshadowed by Osaka’s reveal. Ruzic, who was making just her second grand slam main draw appearance in Australia, had emerged wearing a simple sports T-shirt and shorts, while Osaka was making a fashion statement that turned the Rod Laver Arena into a catwalk.

“It’s a vibe,” said Laura Robson, the former British No 1. “I love it, this is a moment.”

Also speaking on TNT Sports was Tim Henman, who said he was “not qualified to comment”.

But he added: “Wow, I am speechless. It’s pretty cool. Does it put pressure on your performance?”

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“I realise I’m a little strange because I don’t really think I care,” Osaka said afterwards. “I just feel like I want to do things that create joy and happiness. For me, obviously, I really love fashion. That makes me excited to wake up and do the whole walk-on or whatever. It just creates a little bit more joy in that whole match preparation.

“But no, I don’t think in my mind, I’m going to put this on, and if I lose, it’s like a wrap.”

Osaka began by letting her tennis do the talking as she took the first three games – but the match began to turn as Ruzic broke back. Although Osaka won the first set 6-3, Ruzic’s baseline defence and gritty determination started to frustrate the 16th seed. The Croatian levelled the match by winning the second set 6-3, which followed a lengthy delay when the red “out” lights on the side of the net malfunctioned.

Osaka had two break points to establish a 3-0 lead in the decider, but couldn’t take them. Instead, Ruzic, who was celebrating her 23rd birthday, ground down Osaka’s attacking game and secured the break to lead 4-3. From there, Osaka battled back from the brink, winning 12 of the next 15 points to break Ruzic’s resistance and seal victory in 2 hours and 22 minutes. “My serve came in really clutch at the end.”

“She’s an amazing player,” Osaka added. “I’ve never played her before – so I hope to not see her on the other side of the set [again].”

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Osaka reached the US Open semi-finals last season, in her best result since returning to the sport after becoming a mother to her daughter Shai in 2023. The 28-year-old told Vogue that the idea for her walk-on outfit, which was designed by couturier Robert Wun, who has previously styled Beyoncé, Cardi B and Ariana Grande, had also been inspired when reading to Shai. “There was an image of a jellyfish, and when I showed it to her, she got so excited,” Osaka said.

The outfit also featured two butterflies, one on the parasol and the other on top of her wide-brimmed hat, which was a reference to her 2021 Australian Open title run, the tournament where a butterfly landed on her face during one of her matches. Osaka carefully removed the butterfly and set it down by the side of the court, before going on to win the tournament for a second time.

“It’s to do with the Australian Open that I won in 2021, which I guess is a long time ago,” she said.

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Some of Osaka’s bold outfit choices have backfired in the past. At the US Open in 2024, she was knocked out by Karolina Muchova in the second round while wearing an enormous bow on her back. After beating Muchova in the second round of the Australian Open in 2025, Osaka said: “She crushed me in the US Open when I had my best outfit ever. I was so disappointed. I was so mad. This was my little revenge.”

This time, Osaka said she would not consider the idea of not wearing the outfit again. “I almost feel like I’ve learnt that if I have that fear, it comes true more,” she said. “When I was playing today, I just told myself, keep your head on the path. If she beats you, then that’s unfortunate. But hey, at least you’re trending on Twitter.”

Earlier, Katie Boulter was supported like an adopted Aussie as she went down swinging in a 6-0, 7-5 defeat to the in-form 10th seed Belinda Bencic. Boulter had set her expectations extremely low after a difficult 2025, where her ranking plummeted to outside the world’s top 100, and she required late withdrawals to make it into the main draw and avoid the qualifying rounds.

Boulter, who is engaged to Alex de Minaur, was handed a difficult opening match against Bencic, who returned to the world’s top 10 after winning five matches in a row to start the season, including a victory over world No 2 Iga Swiatek.

“She ultimately was a class above me,” Boulter said. “I felt like I was in with a shot in the second and definitely could be playing out there in the third. I think that is my takeaway from it. There are some definite positives. But a lot to learn from.”

Meanwhile, British No 2 Sonay Kartal declared her performance the worst she had played in years after slumping to a 7-6(3), 6-1 defeat to 31st seed Anna Kalinskaya. "Maybe she did raise her level, but my level dipped to a level that hasn’t been that low for years, probably,” Kartal said.