Though she was in action on Rod Laver Arena well after nightfall, Naomi Osaka brought a little bit of sunshine to Day 2 of the Australian Open with a sunflower-inspired match outfit.

Australian Open: Scores | Schedule | Draws

While the bulk of the match kit Osaka wore as she faced Caroline Garcia inside Rod Laver Arena for the second straight year was made up of blacks, whites and grays, she brightened things up by threading a floral motif throughout the outfit with her accessories. On her feet, she wore the latest version of her Osaka GP Challenge 1 PRM shoes -- in a fitting sundial yellow and brown colorway and with abstract sunflower details on the shoe tongues -- and she completed the look with sunflower clips weaved in her braided hair and sunflower earrings.

The choice was intentional, Osaka said.

"The Australian Open's the happy Slam, so I thought it was really fitting for it to have a sunny theme," she noted after exacting revenge on the Frenchwoman with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 win, her first at the Australian Open since 2022.

And she teased there's more where that came from.

"Every Slam this year will have a flower theme shoe," Osaka continued. "I think that's really cute."

But the former World No.1 might also be sending a subliminal message with her latest design.

After all, sunflowers are often said to convey determination -- it's said that they can grow up to 15 feet high, even in less-than-ideal conditions -- as well as positivity and warmth. Those are all fitting words to describe Osaka, too, as she embarks on the second year of her comeback to tennis after the 2023 birth of her daughter, Shai.

The four-time Grand Slam champion offered candor in interviews throughout her return to the Hologic WTA Tour in 2024, detailing the ways in which returning to tennis as a mother changed her outlook on her career and the challenges of getting back to her best, physically and mentally. But she continued to stay positive. That perspective followed her into the early days of the new season in the aftermath of recent injuries that both cut her Asian swing short last fall, and caused her to retire from the final of the ASB Classic just prior to the Australian Open.

Now, the 27-year-old says her mindset is "probably the most clear it's been in a very long time" in the hopes of once against challenging for the sport's biggest titles.

Must See

"I would say when I came here last year, it was kind of like hopes and dreams," Osaka said before this year's fortnight in Melbourne began. "Me sitting here is like reality, which it's funny because I do have the same hopes and dreams, but it's more like understanding how much hard work it takes to, I guess, come to this point."

Osaka's next opponent, like Garcia, is another former Top 10 player whom she faced at a major last year: Karolina Muchova. The 2023 Roland Garros finalist defeated her in the second round of the US Open in straight sets on her way to the semifinals.

Osaka's outlook on the rematch? She hopes to shine in the face of a challenge. Just like a sunflower.

"I love getting difficult draws," she said. "I find that the most fun. It's kind of like once you get a difficult draw, you can prove that you're the best of the best. 

"For me, every tournament or every Grand Slam is a new opportunity."