Japanese Naomi Osaka, a quadruple Grand Slam champion and former WTA world number one, has withdrawn ahead of Saturday’s match she was supposed to play in Melbourne against the home favorite Maddison Inglis.
The Japanese tennis player said she suffered an injury in the previous match against Sorana Cîrstea and that now is not the time to risk worsening her medical condition.
Osaka vs Inglis was supposed to be the last match of the day on Saturday at the AO, on the Rod Laver Arena, but the match did not take place as Osaka did not recover from the medical issues she had in the match against the Romanian Sorana Cîrstea, a match with drama, ending with a nervous breakdown that the player from Târgoviște had towards the Japanese.
"I had to make a difficult decision and withdraw. My body needs rest after the last match. I was so eager to maintain this rhythm, which means so much to me, so to say stop breaks my heart.
However, I cannot risk a more serious injury because I want to return quickly to the circuit. Thank you all for your support, I am grateful to all who have supported me.
I want to thank my entire team for always having my back, as well as the organizers, who have always been kind," Osaka wrote in a statement released to the public.
Osaka has won the Australian Open twice, in 2019 and 2021, and now Maddison Inglis has a clear path to the quarterfinals. It is the first time the Antipodean player has reached this far in the AO, her best performance being the third round, also in Melbourne, in 2022 (when she defeated Leylah Fernandez and Hailey Baptiste).