Naomi Osaka stated that she is "thrilled" to play at the upcoming Canadian Open in Toronto after being granted a main draw wild card.
This WTA tournament is one of two 1000-level events that form a large part of the summer hard-court swing in North America. It is a lynchpin for players who want to do well at the 2024 US Open, where Osaka will face an anxious wait to know her qualification hopes.
The entry list for this year's Canadian Open has been revealed. Main draw action will begin on Tuesday, August 6th. The tournament is observing a late start to first-round matches because of the Olympic Games that don't conclude before Sunday, August 4th.
This is to allow sufficient travel time and rest for those players competing in the Paris Olympics and who intend to play in Toronto (WTA) or Montreal (ATP).
One of them is Naomi Osaka, one of two Japanese women who will play in the Olympic tennis tournament at Roland Garros. The 26-year-old will be determined to do well in her second Olympic participation.
She will be buoyed by her performance at the French Open in late May when she came within a point of defeating eventual champion Iga Swiatek in the second round of the tournament.
The complexity of the schedule will undoubtedly result in a spate of withdrawals at the Canadian Open, but Osaka wishes to play at the Olympics and then in Toronto and has been confirmed as one of four wild card entrants.
"Hi, everyone. It's Naomi here. I'm so excited to be back in Canada for the National Bank Open in August, and I can't wait to see you guys there. Get your tickets now."
"I'm thrilled to be playing at the National Bank Open this year. The city of Toronto has an amazing energy and I can't wait to be back there. I'm incredibly grateful for the wild card opportunity and look forward to playing in front of the passionate Canadian fans,"
It will be the four-time Grand Slam champion's first trip to Toronto since 2022. That year, she retired from her first-round match against Kaia Kanepi because of a back injury.
Last year, she missed the tournament in Montreal because she was on maternity leave after giving birth to her first child. Osaka rejoined the Tour at the start of 2024 and has competed in 14 tournaments.
Some of her season's highlights included reaching the quarterfinals of the WTA 1000 in Doha and helping Japan qualify for the 2024 Billie Jean King Cup Finals. Osaka's most recent tournament was at Wimbledon, where she reached the second-round stage and lost to Emma Navarro.
She is in search of her first WTA title as a mother and is on the cusp of a Top 100 return. A good week in Canada will certainly be enough to push her ranking into two digits.
Osaka is not the only Grand Slam champion who has been offered a main draw wild card in Toronto. Bianca Andreescu, the 2019 Canadian and US Open champion, is the other player.
Subscribed successfully
0 Comments