Tuesday’s scheduled charity match between Emma Raducanu and Naomi Osaka was cancelled after both players withdrew just days before the start of the Australian Open.
Raducanu is set to make her first grand slam appearance in a year after being granted entry into the main draw at the Melbourne Park event, which gets under way on Sunday.
The 2021 US Open champion missed most of 2023 after undergoing wrist and ankle surgeries in May, before returning to the court at the Auckland Classic last week.
She overcame Romania’s Elena-Gabriela Ruse in three sets on her return before suffering a 6-7 (5-7) 7-6 (7-3) 6-1 defeat to eventual runner-up Elina Svitolina in the second round of the tournament.
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On Tuesday, Raducanu was due to meet Osaka in the first of a series of charity matches taking place at Rod Laver Arena this week, but both players withdrew for what Tennis Australia described as “precautionary reasons”.
The BBC reported that Raducanu opted against participating after experiencing “a little soreness” in the aftermath of a two-hour practice session on Monday.
While Raducanu’s last major appearance came at the 2023 edition of the Australian Open, Osaka has not featured at a grand slam since going out in the first round of the 2022 US Open.
The four-time grand slam champion suffered a second-round exit at the Brisbane International last week, in what represented her first tournament appearance since giving birth to her first child last July.
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