Courtesy: Google
On Sunday, January 5, Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka retired midway from the Auckland Open final after suffering an apparent injury, raising doubt about whether she will be a part of the Australian Open later this week. The 27-year-old, who is a former world number one and four-time Grand Slam champion, withdrew herself from the Auckland Open final after clinching the first set against Denmark’s Clara Tauson 6-4.
Notably, after securing the first set, Naomi Osaka was spotted speaking to her coach Patrick Mouratoglou before communicating with the chair umpire and a tour trainer before deciding to not continue playing in the Auckland Open final against Clara Tauson. She was in tears while waiting for the tour trainer to assess her injury before leaving the court, and later on, returned to the court for the prize distribution ceremony.
I've enjoyed playing here and I'm sorry it had to end this way: Naomi Osaka
While there is no confirmation about the exact nature and extent of Naomi Osaka’s injury, ESPN has reported that it seemed to be something related to her abdomen, and not the back injury which had ended her season last year in October at the China Open. In her first comments after withdrawing from the final of the Auckland Open, she said, “I've enjoyed playing here and I'm sorry it had to end this way.”
Moreover, the Auckland Open final was the first title match for Naomi Osaka after returning on tour at the start of 2024 due to personal reasons. She had taken a elongated break from tennis for the birth of her daughter Shai, and a championship victory in New Zealand could have been his first since winning the Australian Open four years ago.
Across the Tasman sea, the Brisbane International final ended up with a decisive winner as world number one Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus defeated Russian qualifier and world number 107 Polina Kudermetova 4-6, 6-3, 6-2.
