Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka withdrew ahead of her third-round match against Maddison Inglis at Rod Laver Arena at the Australian Open, explaining that she needed “to address something my body needs attention for after my last match,” as she wrote on her Instagram story.
The 28-year-old had a heated situation with her previous opponent, Sorana Cirstea, after the Romanian was visibly annoyed by Osaka’s “c’mon” shouts between her first and second serves. During and after the match, Cirstea expressed her frustration, and the icy handshake at the net appeared to affect Osaka, who was barely able to concentrate on her on-court interview after the 6-3 4-6 6-2 second-round win.
Interestingly, the tournament’s style icon did not mention a specific injury in her statement, only noting that her body required attention. During the match against Cirstea, she briefly headed to the locker room and later took a medical timeout while leading 2-1 in the deciding set.
Osaka also expressed her disappointment at having to withdraw from the Australian Open: “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.”
