Japan's Osaka returns to Games' spotlight on Sunday

KUALA LUMPUR: Japan's Naomi Osaka will return to the spotlight on Sunday, kicking off her Olympic campaign as a home crowd favourite after taking a mental health break two months ago.

Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam champion and world number two, has not played a competitive match since pulling out of the French Open in May amid controversy over her decision to skip all press conferences at the tournament in an effort to protect her mental well-being. But with all of her major wins coming on hard courts - the same surface being used in Tokyo - the 23-year-old remains widely seen as one of host Japan's strongest gold medal contenders in a field of 64 players each for women's and men's singles that is missing some of the biggest names in the sport.