HEARTBREAK IN MELBOURNE: WHYNAOMI OSAKA’S INJURY WITHDRAWAL IS A MASSIVE LOSS FOR TENNIS
Two-time champion Naomi Osaka withdraws from the 2026 Australian Open with an abdominal injury, ending her viral "jellyfish" run.
Naomi Osaka, a two-time Australian Open champ, pulled out of the tournament with an abdominal injury just before her third-round match on January 24. She said, “It breaks my heart,” and you could tell she meant it.
The news dropped only hours before she was supposed to face Australian qualifier Maddison Inglis on Melbourne’s centre court. Osaka explained on Instagram, “I’ve had to make the difficult decision to withdraw to address something my body needs attention for after my last match.” She added, “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 court.”
Osaka has dealt with this injury before. She told the media she’d felt it “a couple of times before.” She tried to tough it out—played her last match in pain, hoping a bit of rest would do the trick. But when she warmed up, the pain only got worse.
At 28, and now a mom, Osaka said her body has changed a lot since returning from pregnancy. She’s planning to see a doctor for more tests and knows she needs to be careful.
Despite her early exit, Osaka made a splash at this year’s Open. People couldn’t stop talking about her appearance at Rod Laver Arena in a wild, jellyfish-inspired outfit—a white umbrella, a wide-brimmed hat, a gauzy veil, and a turquoise dress over pleated white pants. But it wasn’t all fashion headlines. In round two, she got into a spat with veteran Sorana Cirstea after shouting “come on” between Cirstea’s first and second serves. Osaka brushed her off in the on-court interview but later apologised for being “disrespectful.” Tennis legends Martina Navratilova and Lindsay Davenport both called her out for breaking basic etiquette.
If Osaka had been able to play—and beat Inglis—she would have set up a much-anticipated showdown with Iga Swiatek. Swiatek, a six-time Slam winner, had her own drama, fighting through a shaky match to beat Anna Kalinskaya 6-1, 1-6, 6-1 and reach the last 16. When she found out Osaka had withdrawn, Swiatek looked surprised. “I don’t know what my reaction should be,” she admitted, but wished Osaka well and said she was excited to reach the fourth round again.
Swiatek’s already got titles from the French Open, US Open, and Wimbledon, but Melbourne keeps slipping through her fingers. Last year, she made it to the semifinals but lost to eventual champ Madison Keys.
Speaking of Keys, she and fellow American Jessica Pegula are lining up for a last-16 showdown—and a little pre-match banter. The two co-host “The Player’s Box” podcast with Jennifer Brady and Desirae Krawczyk, and Keys joked about a wager gone wrong: “She wants to make me eat her disgusting apple pie with cheese on top of it if I lose, which I said I refuse, so she’s going to have to think of something else.” Keys cruised past Karolina Pliskova 6-3, 6-3, while Pegula took down Oksana Selekhmeteva 6-3, 6-2.
Elsewhere, fifth seed Elena Rybakina proved too much for Tereza Valentova, winning 6-2, 6-3.
WHY DID NOVAK DJOKOVIC REACH OUT TO MOISE KOUAME DESPITE WITHDRAWING FROM MIAMI 2026?
Moise Kouame, 17, becomes the youngest Miami Open winner in history and reveals a secret Instagram DM from Novak Djokovic.
Moise Kouame is only 17, but he’s already catching everyone’s eye in tennis. He started this year on fire, grabbing back-to-back ITF titles, then reaching a Challenger semi-final. Now, he's just picked up his first-ever win on the ATP Tour at a Masters 1000 event, no less.
In other news, Leicester City is fighting back against a six-point penalty for breaking financial rules.
Back to Kouame, the world No. 385 pulled off a gritty comeback against Zachary Svajda, winning 5-7, 6-4, 6-4, even while cramping up by the end. People packed Court 7 to watch him make his Masters 1000 debut as a wildcard. Even Novak Djokovic, who skipped the tournament with a shoulder injury, was watching from afar. Since 2019, Djokovic has only played in Miami once, when he was runner-up last year, but clearly, he’s still following the action.
Now, Kouame has made a bit of history. At 17 years and 13 days old, he’s the youngest man ever to win a match at the Miami Open, matched a Nadal record from 2003, and became the seventh-youngest winner at this level. Not bad for a debut. And then, right after his win, he got a message from his idol. Honestly, Kouame was left speechless.
When Steve Weissman from Tennis Channel interviewed him after his first main-draw tour win, Kouame couldn’t hide his nerves. “Actually, I have a small secret. After the win, Novak texted me. I’m so nervous. I don’t know what to answer! I’m really so nervous right now. I don’t know if I’m going to answer. Maybe if you have tips, maybe you can give me?”
He tried to figure out what to say. Should he just text, "Thank you, Novak"? Or maybe, "Thank you, my idol"? Nothing sounded right. “No, never [met him]. It’s my dream. [It was] on Instagram! He DMed me. So, imagine having your idol DM you like this. Oh my god. This is too much for me. Oh my god. Coolest thing ever.”
Weissman jumped in with a bit of advice, too: “Don’t just double-tap it; you’ve got to give a response. ‘Thanks so much, Novak. If you have any time to meet in the future, that would be amazing. Any tips you have, maybe some advice.’
Some tips from Djokovic would come in handy, especially with Kouame set to face 21st seed Jiri Lehecka next. He had to see the physio for cramps after his first-round win, but told Tennis Channel he was doing alright, just a little jittery about talking live on TV.
“Now I’m feeling good, quite stressed! Obviously, we’re live, and my English, all this – I’m quite stressed. But in the match it was cool. I had some cramps, but yeah, I managed to get over it and win at the end. I’m really happy with it,” he said.
What a ride: first big ATP win, a message from Djokovic, and now the whole tennis world is watching.
INSIDE JANNIK SINNER’S HISTORIC INDIAN WELLS VICTORY AS FIRST ITALIAN MALE CHAMPION
Jannik Sinner makes history as the first Italian man to win Indian Wells, defeating Daniil Medvedev in two tiebreaks.
Jannik Sinner crushed Daniil Medvedev’s hopes at Indian Wells Sunday night. Medvedev looked sharp all week; he even took down Carlos Alcaraz to reach the final.
But when it came to the championship match, Sinner edged him out in two tense tiebreaks, 7-6, 7-6. Medvedev’s loss stings, but let’s be real: his level this week showed he’s back to fighting for big trophies after a pretty rough 2025.
He’s set a big goal for himself, too, with all the pressure that comes along with it. After the match, Medvedev, now 30, talked about whether he’s the one who can break up Alcaraz and Sinner’s grip at the top; he even admitted he slipped up a bit in the final.
On that note, it’s wild how Alcaraz and Sinner have ruled the ATP Tour lately. Between them, they’ve grabbed the last nine Grand Slam titles and barely given anyone else a chance. Still, Medvedev made things interesting at Indian Wells by beating Alcaraz and pushing Sinner to the edge.
In his post-match press conference, Medvedev shared his thoughts on his future and the big question: Can he really challenge Sinner and Alcaraz?
He said, “Honestly, it’s a pleasure to play Sinner and Alcaraz. Last year, I didn’t even get a shot; they were out of reach because I kept losing early. I’m glad this time I played well enough to beat the others first, took down Carlos, and then got to face Jannik.
My goal? Not to obsess over them, but to work on my own game, beat everyone else, and then, chances are, in Miami, I'm going to run into one of them in the semis or the final if I play out of my mind.”
He continued, “It’s tough to say if I’m the guy to challenge them, honestly. I’ve lost a bunch against them, and again today with Jannik. But I know I can play top-level tennis. Whoever I meet next, whether it’s Carlos, Jannik, or someone else, I’ll just try to play my best tennis. I proved I can do it again here, in Dubai, and in Brisbane.
On any given day, anyone can challenge them; look at Jakub beating Jannik in Doha or me beating Carlos here. So it’s not just me, not just Novak, not just Sascha. But it’s hard, and that’s why by the end of the season, those guys have sixty wins and only five or six losses, half of those losses coming against each other. It’s a tough mountain to climb, but you just keep trying.”
Now, Sinner, Alcaraz, and Medvedev head to the Miami Masters, which kicks off Tuesday. The last time around, Jakub Mensik won there; it’s the second Masters 1000 event of 2026.
Sinner made history on Sunday. No Italian man had ever won Indian Wells until he pulled it off. He now owns 25 ATP titles and is the youngest player to win all six ATP hard-court Masters events. Back in 1974, John Newcombe was the tournament’s first champ, beating Arthur Ashe in the final. Since then, Djokovic, Nadal, and Federer have all lifted the trophy. Federer and Djokovic sit at the top with five Indian Wells titles each.
