Two-time champion Naomi Osaka withdraws from Australian Open

Former ladies’s world primary Naomi Osaka has withdrawn from the Australian Open.

Event organisers confirmed Osaka’s withdrawal on Twitter on Sunday afternoon, however they did reveal the rationale behind her resolution.

Osaka is a two-time winner at Melbourne Park, having claimed the ladies’s singles title in 2019 and 2021.

Her withdrawal comes a day after males’s world primary Carlos Alcaraz and seven-time main singles winner Venus Williams pulled out of the Australian Open.

Osaka was at lengthy odds to play in Melbourne after posting pictures on social media of herself holidaying in Europe final week.

The 25-year-old’s resolution to not play the Australian Open will solely additional heighten considerations the four-time main singles champion could not return to the tennis courtroom in any respect.

She took a psychological well being break after sitting out the 2021 French Open and later revealed she had been scuffling with melancholy and nervousness for a number of years.

Osaka has not performed since withdrawing from the second spherical of the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo final September with belly pains and has received just one accomplished match since final Could.

She crashed out within the first spherical of her earlier three occasions, together with the US Open, which she has additionally received twice.

Osaka’s final victory was an abbreviated one to say the least, coming after only one sport towards Daria Saville when the Australian suffered a torn ACL in Tokyo.

Her scratching is one other blow to Australian Open organisers already reeling from the retirements final 12 months of Ash Barty, Serena Williams and Roger Federer.

Former Australian Open finalist Simona Halep can be not competing at Melbourne Park.

The withdrawal of Osaka, ranked 42 on the planet, means Ukrainian Dayana Yastremska features entry to the ladies’s principal draw.

AAP/ABC