Naomi Osaka has withdrawn from the 2026 Australian Open due to an injury shortly before her third round match and admitted having to stop her run “breaks my heart.”
The four-time major winner was due to face 168th-ranked Australian qualifier Maddison Inglis in the last match on Rod Laver Arena on Saturday night.
However, Osaka announced during the penultimate match on Rod Laver Arena — Novak Djokovic’s third round contest against Botic van de Zandschulp — that she had pulled out.
Osaka, an Australian Open champion in 2019 and 2021, revealed the unfortunate news in a statement on Instagram.
“I’ve had to make the difficult decision to withdraw to address something my body needs attention for after my last match,” wrote Osaka.
“I was so excited to keep going and this run meant the most to me, so having to stop here breaks my heart, but I can’t risk doing any further damage so I can get back on the court.
Australian Open News
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“Thanks for all the love and support… I’m so grateful everyone embraced me so much. And thank you to my whole team for always having my back and the tournament organisers for being so kind.”
An abdominal injury was cited as the reason for Osaka’s withdrawal.
Osaka had battled to earn three-set wins against Antonia Ruzic and Sorana Cirstea in her first and second round matches at Melbourne Park.
The former world No 1 made plenty of headlines during her Australian Open campaign; starting with the fashion statement she made before her opening round match.
The Japanese star entered the court for her match with Ruzic wearing a jellyfish-inspired turquoise and white outfit that featured a veil and umbrella.
Osaka then sparked complaints from Cirstea in the pair’s second round contest by saying “come on” to herself between her Romanian opponent’s first and second serves.
The 28-year-old faced criticism from WTA Tour legends Martina Navratilova and Lindsay Davenport over her “tennis etiquette” against Cirstea.
Naomi Osaka was criticised by Novak Djokovic’s wife over Sorana Cirstea incident
Novak Djokovic’s wife, Jelena Djokovic, took to Instagram to label Osaka’s actions against Cirstea “disrespectful.”
“I’m surprised that this is not being called hindrance,” Jelena Djokovic wrote.
“In between two serves, when crowds are applauding or shouting, the chair umpire asks not to shout between serves as it is disturbing to the player.
“The point is not finished. Sorana missed her first serve and is focusing on getting in the second, it is a slight pause. And is disrespectful to applaud at someone’s first serve mistake too.”
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