Naomi Osaka withdraws from Japan Open due to Injury

Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka has pulled out of next week’s Japan Open due to a back injury, according to a statement from the Japan Tennis Association.

The WTA 250 tournament, which takes place in Osaka from October 14-20, will miss its hometown star as the 26-year-old former world number one continues to recover.

Osaka impressed at the China Open in Beijing last week, winning three matches. However, during her last-16 clash against eventual champion Coco Gauff, she was forced to retire after the second set due to a back injury. Speaking about the injury, Osaka revealed on social media, “I locked my back up during practice earlier and honestly wasn’t sure if I could even play, but I wanted to try. Unfortunately, things just got progressively worse during the match.”

This withdrawal marks the second time Osaka has had to miss a tournament in her home country. Her last WTA appearance in Japan was in 2022 at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo, where she advanced to the second round after her opponent retired. However, Osaka later withdrew from the event due to abdominal pain.

Since returning to the tour in January 2024 after giving birth to her daughter Shai in July 2023, Osaka has struggled to regain her top form. Despite her setbacks, the two-time Australian Open and US Open champion remains determined as she continues her comeback.

Four-time major champion Naomi Osaka said on Wednesday she “didn’t want to have regrets” after confirming she has teamed up with Serena Williams’ renowned former coach Patrick Mouratoglou.

Former world number one Osaka, now ranked 73, defeated Lucia Bronzetti of Italy 6-3, 6-2 in the first round of the WTA 1000 China Open with the Frenchman Mouratoglou in her players’ box.

The 26-year-old Osaka split from Belgian coach Wim Fissette this month as she attempts to return to the form that propelled her to the top of the women’s game.

Japan’s Osaka said she “felt like I needed a change” and described Mouratoglou, who is best known as Williams’ long-time former coach, as “a big persona”

“I like the way he coaches. I think it’s going to be really interesting,” she said in Beijing after setting up a second-round meeting with 21st seed Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan.

“I think I’m at a stage in my life that I don’t want to have regrets. I’d rather pull the trigger on something and I don’t want to say ‘fail’, but I feel like I really need to learn as much as possible in this stage of my career.

“Patrick seemed like the guy with I guess the information that I wanted to learn from.”

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Naomi Osaka withdraws from Japan Open due to Injury

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