The Australian Open, which opens on January 16, continues to lose prominent players from the world tour.
Two days after it became known that world number 1 Carlos Alcaraz will not take part in the tournament due to a knee injury, Naomi Osaka also announced today (Sunday) that she will not play in the Grand Slam this year, which she has already won twice in the past.
The 15-year-old Japanese, who won the championship twice (in 2019 and 2021) and last year fell to 42nd place in the world tour, did not explain why she decided to withdraw her name from the competition when at the same time the tournament organizers tweeted online.
"Naomi Osaka retired from the Australian Championship. We will definitely miss her."
Naomi Osaka has withdrawn from the Australian Open.
We will miss her at #AO2023 💙
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 8, 2023
Osaka, who has not played professional tennis since September when she was eliminated in the second round of the Tokyo tournament, has been dealing with depression and anxiety in recent years, which forced her to miss Roland Garros in 2021 as well.
Currently, the Japanese has not yet shared with her followers whether and when she will decide to renew her career and return to the tennis courts.
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— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 8, 2023
It should be noted that in addition to Osaka and Alcaraz, Simona Halep and Venus Williams, who is suffering from an injury, will not come to compete in the prestigious Australian Championship.
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