The Australian Open will be held without four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka and the puzzling circumstances leave many questions unanswered.
As announced by the organizers about a week before the start, the Japanese tennis player withdrew her participation. “They will be missed at #AO2023,” she said on Twitter.
The reason for the cancellation of the 25-year-old, winner of the tournament in 2019 and 2021, remained open in the short and poorly illustrated press release.
Naomi Osaka not in Melbourne – Gone forever?
In recent days it has been reported that Tennis Australia has been unable to determine the current location of Osaka. In the past few weeks she has appeared several times in Europe on social media, together with her friend, rapper Cordae.
Osaka has not competed in a WTA competition since withdrawing from a tournament in Tokyo due to abdominal pain last September, and the former leader has slipped to 42nd in the world rankings.
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He had previously failed in the first round of the French Open and the US Open. Osaka previously spoke publicly about mental issues in 2021 and stalled until the Olympic Games in their home country. The mysterious new events are now fueling speculation that Osaka will restart her career.
Australian Open: several stars are missing
On Saturday, four-time Australian Open winner Venus Williams (42), despite her wildcard, announced her resignation due to an unspecified injury.
Also, former world number one Simona Halep (Romania) is suspended after a positive doping test.
For the men, world number one Carlos Alcaraz announced his cancellation on Friday, the Spaniard missing with a muscle injury.
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