Four-time tennis Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka will not participate in the Billie Jean King Cup (BJKC) 2024 Finals in Spain.
The former world number one will miss the final stage of the tournament, to be played in Malaga from 13-20 November, citing back and abdominal injuries suffered earlier in October.
Osaka, currently ranked 59th in the world, was injured during her China Open round-of-16 match against Coco Gauff on 1 October, which eventually forced her to retire from the contest.
On Friday (18 October) it was announced that Osaka had withdrawn from the Pan Pacific Open 2024 in Tokyo due to that same injury, and on Sunday evening (20 October) she revealed she would also not be able to represent Japan at the BJKC in Malaga due to lower back and abdominal problems.
“I’ve played so many tournaments this year, so it was definitely the toughest decision to not play this and obviously not play BJK,” Osaka told reporters in Tokyo. “I really honestly enjoyed it so much, and I think it helped with my development as a player.
“I thought I strained my back, but I did an MRI in Beijing, and they said that I bulged a disc in my back and I also raptured abdominal muscles,” Osaka said.
“I was practicing in Los Angeles in order to play here, but then I took another MRI and it said that I still have tears.”
Osaka’s withdrawal was confirmed by tournament organisers on Tuesday (29 October), who said via X, “Malaga will miss you, Naomi”.
The final torchbearer for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 in 2021 will now likely target the Australian Open in January 2025 for her return to top level competitive tennis.
Naomi Osaka to miss Billie Jean King Cup finals due to injuries
The announcement of Osaka’s withdrawal comes three days after the Japanese star pulled out of the Pan Pacific Open.
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