TOKYO: Naomi Osaka has not played a tennis match since September and her withdrawal from next week’s Australian Open has raised concerns that the former world No.
1 may never appear on court again. Osaka’s social media accounts have stayed silent since Tennis Australia tweeted on Sunday that the two-time Melbourne champion would miss the first Grand Slam of the year, giving no reason for her absence.
Osaka’s posts over the past few months have shown her traveling in Europe with her boyfriend, the rapper Cordae, and announcing that her sports management agency had signed up world No.
2 Ons Jabeur. But there has been little evidence of the Japanese player spending time practicing on court, fueling speculation that the four-time Grand Slam champion’s tennis career could be over at the age of 25.