Local hope Maddison Inglis is through to the round of 16 at the Australian Open after the shock withdrawal of two-time champion Naomi Osaka.
The pair were scheduled to meet in the night session at Rod Laver Arena, but the Japanese superstar dropped a bombshell statement just after 8pm local time.
“I’ve had to make the difficult decision to withdraw to address something my body needs attention for after my last match,” Osaka wrote on social media.
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“I was so excited to keep going and this run meant the most to me, so having to stop here breaks my heart but I can’t risk doing any further damage so I can get back on the court.
“Thanks for all the love and support … I’m so grateful everyone embraced me so much.
“And thank you to my whole team for always having my back and the tournament organisers for being so kind.”
Osaka was the talk of the tournament when she walked out on Rod Laver Arena for her first-round win over Antonia Ruzic in a whimsical couture outfit inspired by a jellyfish.
The two-time Open champion completed the look with a dramatic white wide-brimmed hat with a gauzy veil over her face and train, as well as a white parasol.
There was no repeat in her second-round match, but there were fireworks at the end of it after Osaka and opponent Sorana Cirstea were involved in a frosty exchange.
Osaka took a medical timeout during that win over Cirstea, but was cagey about the issue when speaking after the match.
“It’s kind of a re-occurring thing. I guess if you look at my medical history, you can maybe do like a little guessing game,” Osaka said.
“For me, I’m just really glad that I kind of pushed through it and also played really good tennis in the third set.
“So I try to just leave the tournament site with that in mind for the next days.”
But for Inglis, it’s the stuff of dreams.
The Aussie had already come through qualifying before sealing memorable three-set wins over good friend Kimberly Birrell and German Laura Siegmund.
But the round of 16 is something the world No.168 surely never thought was possible.
She becomes the first Aussie female to reach the second week since Ash Barty’s title-winning run in 2022.
