Despite not currently holding a Grand Slam title and slipping to 10th in the women's tennis rankings, the former world number one registered the most lucrative ever year for a sportswoman in 2019, earning $1.4 million more than Williams, Forbes reported. 

Osaka was a year old when Williams, who is now 38, won her first major title, and the newcomer only picked up her first Grand Slam trophy when she beat the American in the 2018 US Open final, causing the veteran to earn three code violations in a bad-tempered defeat.

Russian Maria Sharapova, who retired earlier this year to her lavish beachside home in Florida, held the record before Williams, earning just under $30 million in 2015.

Osaka has become a champion on both of the occasions when she has progressed beyond the fourth round at a Grand Slam, winning the 2018 US Open as a 20-year-old before again emerging victorious at the Australian Open the following January.

That made her the first Asian player to reach number one in the rankings and earned her more than $4 million in prize money, although her plans to represent her country and brands including US multinational Procter and Gamble at this summer’s Olympic Games in Tokyo have been put on hold by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sharapova’s surprise departure and Williams’ mooted retirement may have worked in Osaka’s favour after Nike won a bidding war with Adidas to supply her apparel, paying $10 million for the privilege until 2025. RT