The abdominal injury that caused Naomi Osaka to retire from the Auckland final with a one-set lead over Clara Tauson less than two weeks ago struck again Friday, forcing the four-time major champion to cut a promising Australian Open short.
Appearing with discomfort late in the first set of her third-round encounter with Belinda Bencic, most visibly on a reduced service motion, Osaka stopped the match after dropping an opening tiebreak, 7-6 (3). The two-time Melbourne title holder was visited by the medical staff after she battled through pain to hold for 6-5.
“At this moment, I just feel for Naomi. I saw her struggling a little bit in the end of the set,” Bencic said in her on-court interview. “Obviously it’s not the way you would like that match to end.”
