Naomi Osaka defeated 15th seed Caroline Garcia in straight sets on Monday at the Qatar Open, putting the first round loss in Abu Dhabi last week behind her.
After a 15-month break for maternity leave during the tour, Osaka, the former world number one, has won two of her five matches since her return last month. With this 7-5, 6-4 victory in Doha, the Japanese four-time Grand Slam champion was getting some tiny revenge on Garcia, the Frenchman who had defeated her in the opening round of the Australian Open last month.
And she believes that, following motherhood, she is starting to regain her footing.
"I feel like I'm a much better player now. In Australia, my returns weren't as good and I don't feel like I was as focused as I am now," said the match winner.
On coming back physically after pregnancy she added: "It's been a really tough journey.
"I felt like I was chasing myself in the past and it honestly wasn't really healthy to do.
"After giving birth, I feel I trained really quickly, I'm a very big perfectionist and it's tough when you don't see results as quickly.
"I felt like I was driving a car that wasn't mine. So my body didn't feel like the body that I was used to."
"It was in that journey I felt like I learned how to love myself as I am now. I got to wake up every day and see my daughter and know that I was strong enough for her to come into this world."
Osaka's next assignment on her comeback trail is a second round date with Petra Martic of Croatia.