Naomi Osaka quits Australian Open hours before clash with Aussie Maddison Inglis

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.

“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 later detailed in a brief interview she played her second-round match against Sorana Cirstea with “some pain”.

“It’s an injury I’ve had a couple of times before, and I thought I could push through it,” she said.

“I thought maybe if I gave myself a break, I would be able to handle it, but I warmed up, and it got a lot worse.

“I definitely have to do more tests, and coming back from pregnancy, my body changed quite a lot.

“So this is something have to be really cautious of.”

It is the second-straight year the 27-year-old has withdrawn at Melbourne Park in the third round following her 2025 retirement against Belinda Bencic after one set.

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.

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.

Inglis will face either world No.2 Iga Swiatek in the fourth round on Monday.

The 28-year-old, who recently got engaged to fellow Aussie star Jason Kubler, is guaranteed $480,000 by advancing to the fourth round.