Edgar Su/Portal
Naomi Osaka hits a forehand against Caroline Garcia in her first round match at the Australian Open.
CNN –
Naomi Osaka's return to Grand Slam tennis ended with a first-round loss to Caroline Garcia at the Australian Open.
Osaka, a two-time champion in Melbourne, competed in her first Grand Slam tournament in more than a year on Monday when she lost 6-4, 7-6 (7-2) to Garcia.
The Japanese star player took a 15-month break from tennis to look after her mental health before becoming a mother for the first time in July.
She fought hard in a tight match against 16th-seeded Garcia at Rod Laver Arena, but was trailing in the first set when the Frenchwoman secured a break of serve at 2-2 – the only break of the match.
A tight second set was decided by a tie-break in which Garcia pulled away and tied the contest when Osaka's backhand hit the net over the edge of the court.
Edgar Su/Portal
Garcia resorts to the backhand against Osaka.
“I felt like I did my best,” Osaka told reporters after the game. “It was just really nice to be back with Rod Laver and listen to the crowd interact with the game.”
Every seeded player at the Australian Open would have been keen to avoid Osaka in the first round after her ranking dropped during her absence from the sport.
But the 30-year-old Garcia put in a confident performance against the four-time Grand Slam champion, scoring 13 aces – including two in the second-set tiebreak – and 34 winners.
In the second round she will now face the unseeded Polish player Magdalena Fręch.
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This was Osaka's first Grand Slam appearance since the US Open in 2022.
Ahead of the Australian Open, Osaka marked her return to tennis with a win over Germany's Tamara Korpatsch. At the Brisbane International tournament she then lost in the second round against the Czech star player Karolína Plíšková in three sets.
“I think I learned a lot during this trip, both on and off the court,” Osaka said. “I also think I just played against some really good people. It's a little unfortunate… I guess I'll just have to wait and see how the rest of my season goes.”