The four-time Grand Slam champion bows out of her first WTA final in three years after winning the first set at the Auckland Open.
Naomi Osaka has withdrawn from the Auckland Classic final with an abdominal injury, a major blow for the Japanese star just a week before the start of the Australian Open.
Playing her first WTA final in three years, against Denmark’s Clara Tauson, the four-time Grand Slam champion called for physiotherapy after winning the first set 6-4 and withdrew shortly after on Sunday.
Osaka’s sudden withdrawal from the Australian Open warm-up came as a shock after she played without apparent trouble in the 35-minute opening set, unleashing powerful groundstrokes to break her opponent in the third and fifth games.
During the changeover, the 27-year-old stood up and performed a series of stretches during a medical timeout.
After consulting with the coach, she shook hands with Tauson, who captured a third career title and her first since 2021.
Osaka did not disclose details of what forced her to withdraw during a brief court interview.
However, in a statement, the WTA said she had retired “due to an abdominal injury”.
“I just want to thank everyone for welcoming me to such a beautiful city and I had a lot of fun playing here and I’m really sorry for how it ended,” Osaka said.
“I hope you enjoyed the tennis we played and I’m really, really grateful to be here.”
It was a disappointing weekend for Osaka, who was chasing her first title in four years since winning the 2021 Australian Open.
Her final final appearance came at the Miami Open the following year, before taking a 15-month break and giving birth to her first child in mid-2023.
She returned to tennis 12 months ago and rose to 57th in the world.
Osaka arrived in Auckland professing the return of her “deep love” for tennis and expressed confidence in the possibility of a strong campaign at the first Grand Slam of the year, which begins in Melbourne on January 12.
