Naomi Osaka, star tennis player, experienced another heartbreaking departure from the competition when she withdrew from her first-round match at the Canadian Open due to a back issue, casting doubt on her fitness going into the US Open.
In a match against Estonia’s Kaia Kanepi, the four-time Grand Slam winner pulled the plug after falling behind 7-6, 3-0, and broke down in tears as she left the court.
Before leaving the court, Naomi shook hands with her rival and described the severity of her injury and how she felt from the very beginning of the match. Kaia played well, and I’d want to congratulate her and wish her luck for the remainder of the competition. She added.
Injuries have ruined the season Osaka. She withdrew due to an abdominal ailment from the semifinals of the Melbourne Summer Set 1 competition in January and was unable to play at the Wimbledon and Italian Open events because of an Achilles issue.
Osaka’s ranking just dropped to No. 39; the disappointing result adds to a trying period.
She chose to forego Wimbledon in June because of a few bothersome injuries and hoped to get back in shape before the year’s final grand slam in New York.
After making her return to competition at the Mubadala Silicon Valley Classic last week, where she advanced to the round of 16, where she lost to Coco Gauff, the National Bank Open was Osaka’s second tournament since the May French Open.
Having won five of her past six matches, Kanepi’s triumph over Osaka extended her recent run of success. Last week, at the Citi Open, she made her 10th career singles final, ascending to the world No. 31 spot, which is her highest position since 2014.
Negative trends for Naomi Osaka
For the 24-year-old, who has recently had a difficult time finding her form, the early exit is just more bad luck.
Naomi Osaka has only played in four tournaments in 2022 after reaching the final of the Miami Open earlier this year; the Japanese player has only achieved two victories.
Wim Fissette, Osaka’s longtime coach, and she recently parted ways due to her Achilles injury. Additionally, she has recently been quite transparent about her battles with anxiety and despair.
Naomi Osaka withdrew from the 2021 French Open and stated that she did so in order to “guard her mental health” by declining to speak to the media.
Naomi broke down in tears earlier this year at Indian Wells when a heckler yelled, “Naomi, you suck!” She had taken a little vacation from the sport at that point.
Considering her previous injury issues, Osaka’s participation in the US Open, which is set to begin on August 29, is doubtful.
Canadian Open progress for Ajla Tomljanovic
Ajla Tomljanovic defeated Veronika Kudermetova in a different matchup, moving on to the second round with a score of 6-4 2-6 7-6 (7-3)
On Tuesday, the 29-year-old Australian defeated the Russian World No.18 in two hours and 19 minutes, setting up a matchup with Polish top seed Swiatek.
Camila Giorgi, the current champion, defeated Emma Raducanu, the current US Open champion, 7-6 (7-0), 6-2.
Raducanu, the ninth-seeded player, led 2-0 in the second set, but the Italian came back to win the next six games with a combination of strong returns, net play, and movement. With a 6-1 6-3 victory over fellow American Madison Brengle, the 10th seed Coco Gauff also advanced to the round of 32.
