Naomi Osaka’s ‘body got a shock’ as she pulls out of her semi-final in warm-up event for Australian Open
- Defending Australian Open champion says she is suffering from an abdominal injury after playing her first matches in four months
- Four-time grand slam winner pulls out against Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova, who goes on to face Simona Halep in the final
Naomi Osaka pulled out of a warm-up tournament for the Australian Open on Saturday, saying her “body got a shock” after playing her first matches for four months, opening the Melbourne Summer Set title door to Simona Halep.
Osaka, the reigning Australian Open champion, hit the court this week for the first time since her tearful early exit at the US Open, after which she took a long break to deal with personal matters.
In Melbourne, she played three matches in quick succession and they took a toll. She withdrew before the start of her semi-final on Rod Laver Arena against Russian Veronika Kudermetova.
“Unfortunately I have an abdominal injury which I need to rest and prepare for the #AusOpen,” the Japanese superstar and top seed said in a statement released by the Australian Open on Twitter.
Osaka added on her own Twitter feed that it had been a tough return and she didn’t want to push too hard with the opening grand slam of the year starting on January 17.