The four-time Grand Slam champion bows out of her first WTA final in three years after winning the first set of the Auckland Open.
Naomi Osaka has pulled out of the final of the Auckland Classic with an abdominal injury, a huge blow for the Japanese star just a week before the start of the Australian Open.
The four-time Grand Slam champion, playing in her first WTA final in three years against Denmark’s Clara Tauson, required physiotherapy after winning the opening set 6-4 and retired shortly afterwards on Sunday.
Osaka’s sudden withdrawal from the Australian Open warm-up event came as a shock after she played the 35-minute opening set without any apparent problems and hit some powerful groundstrokes in the third and fifth games to overcome her opponent.
During the changeover, the 27-year-old stood up during a medical timeout and performed a series of stretching exercises.
After consulting with the coach, she shook hands with Tauson, who won his third career title and his first since 2021.
Osaka gave no details about what led to her withdrawal in a brief court interview.
However, in a statement, the WTA said she had withdrawn “due to an abdominal injury”.
“I just want to thank everyone for welcoming me to such a beautiful city. “I had a lot of fun playing here and I’m really sorry about how it turned out,” Osaka said.
“I hope you enjoyed the tennis we played and I’m really grateful to be here.”
It was a disappointing end to the week for Osaka, who was seeking her first title in four years since winning the 2021 Australian Open.
Her final final appearance was at the Miami Open the following year before she took a 15-month break and gave birth to her first child in mid-2023.
She returned to tennis twelve months ago and has risen to number 57 in the world rankings.
Arriving in Auckland, Osaka announced her “deep love” for tennis was returning and expressed confidence she could put in a strong performance at the first Grand Slam of the year, which begins in Melbourne on January 12.
