Naomi Osaka’s first tournament at the elite level since becoming a mother has ended in a second-round loss to three-time champion Karolina Pliskova in the Brisbane International.
The four-time major winner won her return match on Monday in straight sets against Tamara Korpatsch. A second-round encounter featuring two former No 1-ranked players was a step up in tempo and a better indication of how Osaka’s preparations are going for the Australian Open starting later this month in Melbourne. Osaka won the first set but Pliskova recovered and fired 16 aces and hit 50 winners in a 3-6, 7-6 (4), 6-4 win.
A loss didn’t bother Osaka as much as the missed opportunity for more matches ahead of the year’s first Grand Slam tournament.
“The week is definitely shorter than I wanted it to be,” Osaka said in a news conference after her loss. “I feel like I’m pretty good where I am right now. Even the last time I played her, I think I played better today.
“I feel like, honestly, I think I’m pretty good. Like, the court is just really … It’s her court, you know what I mean? I guess I’ll see what happens in Melbourne.”
“I saw the stats after and my break points could have been better,” Osaka added, “but I think other than that we both played really well … so hopefully she says the same thing!”
A former finalist at Wimbledon and the U.S. Open now ranked 39th, the 31-year-old Pliskova was playing for the first time since September after a left wrist injury curtailed her 2023 season.
“A lot of things to improve, but a good start,” to the season, said Pliskova, who had her left wrist and hand taped for the opening match of the day in the Pat Rafter Arena. She’ll next play third-seeded Jelena Ostapenko, who beat Camila Giorgi 6-1, 6-4.
Top seed and defending Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka had a 6-3, 6-0 win over Lucia Bronzetti of Italy in the following match. Second-seeded Elena Rybakina, the 2022 Wimbledon champion, was scheduled to meet Olivia Gadecki in a night match.
On the men’s side, Australian qualifier James Duckworth beat Yannick Hanfmann 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (2) and fourth-seeded Ugo Humbert had a 6-4, 6-4 win over Alex Michelsen.
Osaka’s next match will be an exhibition in Melbourne on Rod Laver Arena, the main court for the Australian Open, next week.
She was happy with her serve against Pliskova, firing 14 aces and just two double-faults, and winning 83% of points when she got her first serve into play.
“I’ve trained so hard since giving birth, I need to enjoy these moments,” Osaka said, adding she’s changed her attitude to winning and losing since becoming a mom. “I do feel different. I mean, of course I feel sad, but the sadness is me being like, ‘Aww, I wish I could have done better, because I know I’m spending so much time away from her (Shai), so I want it to be worth it somehow’.”
Competing in Brisbane proved that all her practice wasn’t a waste ahead of the Australian Open, where she has won two of her Grand Slam titles.
“For me even stepping on the court is a personal win because a couple of weeks ago I was even doubting if I could play with everyone,” she said. “So I guess these two matches that I’ve had kind of prove to me that I am doing OK, and the year is just going to get better for me.”
Emma Raducanu, meanwhile, has earned direct entry into the main draw at the Australian Open following a number of late withdrawals.
The 2021 US Open champion made a winning return to the court at the ASB Classic in Auckland on Tuesday after being sidelined since April following operations on both her wrists and one ankle.
It appeared that Raducanu was going to be required to go through qualifying for the Australian Open due to her protected ranking – given to players who have been sidelined long term – not being high enough.
However, the Australian Open announced in a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday that the 21-year-old would take the place of American Lauren Davis in the main draw after the American withdrew due to a shoulder injury.
Davis joins French Open finalist Karolina Muchova, Irina-Camelia Begu and Caty McNally on the withdrawal list. Two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova has also withdrawn from the tournament after announcing she is pregnant with her first child.