is a Japanese professional tennis player.
She achieved her career-high singles ranking of world No. 122 in January 2018. On 23 October 2023, she peaked at No. 27 in the WTA doubles rankings.
Kato has won four doubles titles on the WTA Tour and two WTA 125 doubles titles. In addition, she has won four singles and 13 doubles titles on the ITF Circuit.
Playing for Japan Fed Cup team, Kato has a win–loss record of 6–1 (5–1 in doubles), as of August 2023.
Career
2023 : Mixed doubles French Open champion, back to top 30 with a new career high and Elite Trophy Kato won her Major title in the mixed doubles at the 2023 French Open, together with her German partner Tim Pütz.
She reached a new high career ranking of No. 27 on 23 October 2023, the week she was selected to participate in the 2023 WTA Elite Trophy with Aldila Sutjiadi.
2023 French Open controversy
At the 2023 French Open, she and her partner Aldila Sutjiadi were defaulted in the women's doubles, after she accidentally hit a ball girl with a ball. She had to forfeit her points and prize money, although she made clear she would appeal the supervisor's decision. Kato received ample support from fellow players, including from the Professional Tennis Players Association, who deemed the disqualification unfair. Kato and Sutjiadi's opponents, Sara Sorribes Tormo and Marie Bouzková, were criticized for pushing the supervisor to disqualify Kato and laughing after the pair were disqualified, but did not apologize to Kato.
Personal life and background
Kato has one brother named Yuki. She started playing tennis at the age of eight. She has stated that her tennis idols growing up were Justine Henin and Roger Federer. Her favorite surface to play on is hardcourt, but her favorite tournament is Wimbledon.
Performance timelines
''Only main-draw results in WTA Tour, Grand Slam tournaments, Fed Cup/Billie Jean King Cup and Olympic Games are included in win–loss records and career statistics.
Doubles
Mixed doubles
Significant finals
Grand Slam tournaments
Mixed doubles: 1 (title)
WTA Elite Trophy
Doubles: 1 (runner-up)
WTA career finals
Singles: 1 (runner-up)
Doubles: 12 (4 titles, 8 runner-ups)
WTA Challenger finals
Doubles: 3 (2 titles, 1 runner-up)
ITF Circuit finals
Singles: 8 (4 titles, 4 runner–ups)
Doubles: 26 (13 titles, 13 runner–ups)
Junior Grand Slam tournament finals
Girls' doubles: 1 (runner–up)