Naomi on topping Forbes highest-paid female athlete list: It's weird

Naomi Osaka

Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka is finding the kind of attention she has been attracting after topping the Forbes highest-paid female athlete list, weird.

The two-time Grand Slam champion dethroned former World No. 1 Serena Williams with earnings of $37.4 million (Rs 273cr) over the past year with $34 million (Rs 249cr) coming from endorsements and $3.4 million (Rs 24cr) in prize money.

"It's a bit weird, because I feel people are looking at me differently now. I mean, I'm weird, right? It's kind of a fact. So people were always looking at me differently. But now people are kind of looking, looking," Osaka was quoted as saying by Essentially Sports.

The former World No. 1 has signed endorsement deals with some of the biggest brands.

In May, she was ranked No. 29 in Forbes' annual list of the 100 top earning athletes in the world.

Osaka is in New York for the US Open. She withdrew from the Western & Southern Open WTA final due to a left hamstring injury on Saturday.

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