Switzerland’s Belinda Bencic advanced to the last 16 of the Australian Open after two-time champion Naomi Osaka retired during yesterday’s third-round match with an abdominal strain that has affected her since the start of the season.
Bencic took the first set in a tiebreak 7-6 (7/3) before Japan’s Osaka, who had also pulled out of the Auckland final earlier this month due to an abdominal injury, withdrew from the contest.
Osaka had said the result from an magnetic resonance imaging scan before the tournament “wasn’t fantastic,” but came through two rounds, beating Caroline Garcia and Karolina Muchova in three-set matches.
Photo: AFP
However, the clash against Bencic proved to be a step too far for the 27-year-old who said her withdrawal seemed “inevitable” after the strain she put on her abdomen in the earlier rounds.
“It’s not fantastic and I’m feeling not great, not bad. In the middle somewhere,” Osaka told reporters.
“It was a little hectic trying to manage it [during the tournament] because obviously my draw was quite tough,” she said.
“I was going to therapy every day and into the night. So the days have been very long for me. Obviously after my last match it got way worse,” she added.
Bencic broke early to go 1-0 up, but Osaka showed promise and quickly found her range to keep the Swiss at bay with an effective first serve and deep groundstrokes while she also held her nerve on a crucial hold to lead 5-2.
However, Osaka, who won the title at Melbourne Park in 2019 and 2021, was visibly struggling and she lost her composure when she failed to serve out the set as Bencic grew in confidence with two searing returns.
Osaka then called for a physiotherapist during a changeover and although she initially soldiered on after treatment, she could not continue after the tiebreak.
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