Jake MichaelsJan 24, 2026, 06:01 AM ET
- Jake Michaels is a Melbourne-based sports writer who has worked for ESPN since 2013. He primarily writes on the AFL, but his assignments have taken him all around the world, covering everything from Formula One to Grand Slam tennis, championship boxing to international basketball, and the Olympic Games.
MELBOURNE, Australia -- Former world No. 1 Naomi Osaka withdrew from her third-round match at the Australian Open because of an abdominal injury, hours before the match was scheduled to begin.
Osaka, 28, a two-time champion at Melbourne Park, said on social media that the injury was sustained during her heated second-round win over Romania's Sorana Cirstea. In comments later published by the tournament, Osaka said she had a left abdominal issue.
"It's an injury I've had a couple of times before, and I thought I could push through it," she said. "I played my last match with some pain, and I thought maybe if I gave myself a break before my match today, I would be able to handle it. But I warmed up, and it got a lot worse."
She said she would need more tests before deciding on long-term treatment.
"Obviously I think coming back from pregnancy, my body changed quite a lot," she said. "So this is something I have to be really cautious of."
Osaka had a daughter, Shai, in July 2023 during a 15-month break from tennis. She returned to competition in 2024 and made it back to the semifinals of a major for the first time at last year's US Open.
Osaka headed to the locker room briefly during her second-round match and took a medical timeout when leading 2-1 in the deciding set.
"I've had to make the difficult decision to withdraw to address something my body needs attention for after my last match," Osaka posted to social media Saturday evening. "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.
"Thanks for all the love and support. I'm so grateful everyone embraced me so much."
She was scheduled to face Australian qualifier Maddison Inglis at Rod Laver Arena following 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic's match against Botic Van De Zandschulp, a straight-sets victory that was Djokovic's 400th career Grand Slam win.
Osaka won the Australian Open in 2019 and 2021. She won two other Grand Slam titles at the US Open, beating Serena Williams in the 2018 final and Victoria Azarenka in 2020.
Inglis will next face No. 2-ranked Iga Świątek, who had a 6-1, 1-6, 6-1 win later Saturday over No. 31 Anna Kalinskaya. In an on-court interview following the match, Swiatek was told of Osaka's withdrawal.
"Hopefully Naomi is well. She was playing great," said Swiatek, who is in Australia bidding to complete a career Grand Slam. "It's exciting to be in a fourth round again."
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
