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Tennis Players Naomi Osaka, Kei Nishikori Put Through the Wringer in Cup Noodle's Prince of Tennis Ad

After campaigns featuring Attack on Titan mystery meat, host club members, nostalgic animated commercials, and Final Fantasy XV DLC, it's anyone's guess what Cup Noodle will do next.

2019 is a new year and with Japan on the cusp of Olympic greatness, Cup Noodle is looking to the world of sports for inspiration. The company debuted a jaw-dropping animated ad featuring tennis greats Kei Nishikori and Naomi Osaka on New Year's Eve to kick things off.

The ad debuted with Nissin's "Hungry to Win" campaign site featuring artwork by Prince of Tennis creator Takeshi Konomi. Nishikori, Osaka, and fellow tennis player Yosuke Watanuki are featured on the site. The campaign has since expanded its sights beyond real-life tennis players to include the athletes of Konomi's manga and anime.

The new ad debuted on Thursday and shows Nishikori and Osaka relaxing on a cruise liner on their away to Australia for the Australian Open. Suddenly, coach Nyudō Mifūne from The Prince of Tennis drops onto the ship from an airplane. With the push of a button, he transforms the cruise liner into a dolphin-shaped submarine. Thus, Nishikori and Osaka's unconventional training regimen begins.

The official Twitter account for Cup Noodle is sharing additional collaboration images of Coach Mifūne's strange training methods to prepare for the Australian Open. An image shared on Thursday shows the athletes and characters imitating kangaroos as part of a training exercise.

Cup Noodle's first Prince of Tennis collaboration ad ends with a cliff-hanger, so expect even more strange tennis exercises leading up to the actual Australian Open at the end of the month.

Source: Cup Noodle's 'Hungry to Win' campaign page via Nijimen