Naomi Osaka, the 24-year-old former US Open champion, lost her opening match at the tournament in Queens to American-born Danielle Collins.
The four-time Grand Slam champion fell in a tiebreaker in the first set, 7–6, and couldn’t recover, as she subsequently dropped the second set 6–3 to lose the match.
This marks Osaka’s second consecutive first-round exit in a major tournament, as she lost in the opening match at the French Open, before sitting out Wimbledon.
Prior to the French Open, she lost in the third round of the Australian Open.
Collins reached her first Grand Slam final at the Australian Open in January and showed that same sort of hard-court form in her victory over former No. 1 Osaka that ended after midnight as Tuesday turned to Wednesday.
Entering this contest, Osaka held a 3-0 career edge against Collins, winning every set they had played.
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The Japanese-born player won the U.S. Open in 2018 and 2020, and the Australian Open in 2019 and 2021.
Osaka is now ranked 44th, which means she could have been drawn to face anyone in the first round.
As for her future plans, Osaka, who has been a vocal advocate for mental health awareness, which has led her to sit out various tournaments throughout her young career, said she will reflect on her time, and make a decision going forward.
“I think I’ll just take it day by day,” she said.
