Japanese tennis player Naomi Osaka had to withdraw from her Australian Open semifinal matchup at the Melbourne Summer Set due to an abdominal injury.
Last week, the 24-year-old tweeted that she would be pulling out of the tournament, which serves as a warm-up to the Australian Open.
She tweeted Saturday, “Sad to withdraw due to injury from my match today, my body got a shock from playing back to back intense matches after the break I took. Thank you for all the love this past week. I’ll try to rest up and I’ll see you soon!”
Osaka was scheduled to go up against Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova on Saturday before her withdrawal. She had previously beat German’s Andrea Petkovic 6-1, 7-5 in the quarterfinal on Friday.
In another statement shared online by the Australian Open, Osaka reiterated that she would be taking a pause.
She said, “I had a lot of fun playing here in Melbourne. Unfortunately, I have an abdominal injury which I need to rest and prepare for the Australian Open.”
Osaka recently told PEOPLE about how she is ready to win another Australian Open title. She previously won the Australian Open in 2019 and 2021.
Osaka said she was feeling good about her chances. She said, “I’ve had a really productive offseason training, so I’m looking forward to seeing where my level is at in Australia. I love the people and the culture in Australia, so it’s a really fun time of year.”
The four-time Grand Slam singles champion explained how lucky she feels after getting to play tennis even as the ongoing pandemic continues to grapple the whole world.
Osaka told PEOPLE, “It’s been such a difficult time for so many people. I’m grateful to have been kept busy and able to work. Not everyone has been so fortunate.”
