Tears for Naomi Osaka as she retires from Auckland final, days before Australian Open
Japanese star wins first set of Auckland Classic final against Clara Tauson before sudden withdrawal
Naomi Osaka retired from the final of the Auckland Classic with an abdominal injury on Sunday, a blow to the Japanese star just a week before the start of the Australian Open.
Playing in her first WTA final in three years, against Denmark’s Clara Tauson, the four-time grand slam champion called for the physio after taking the opening set 6-4 and pulled out shortly afterwards.
Osaka’s sudden withdrawal from the Australian Open warm-up event came as a shock after playing with no apparent problem in the 35-minute opening set, unleashing some powerful groundstrokes to break her opponent in the third and fifth games.
At the changeover, the 27-year-old stood and performed a series of stretches during a medical timeout.
After consulting the trainer she shook the hand of Tauson, who picked up a third career title and her first since 2021.
