Reason Behind Why Osaka's First Opponent Refused To Shake Hands Revealed

| by Nurein Ahmed

Naomi Osaka won her first match on her comeback by beating Germany's Tamara Korpatsch in straight sets.

Osaka, playing at the star-studded Brisbane International as a wildcard, won 6-3, 7-6, in almost two hours to book her spot in the second round. The Japanese star fired four aces and won 73% fist-serve points. She also broke her opponent's serve four times.

It was a great way to kick off her new year despite a nervy end to the match in which Osaka failed to serve out the contest at 5-3 up in the second set and needed three match points in a dramatic tiebreak to win it 11-9.

After the match, something unusual happened as Osaka trudged to the net to shake hands with Korpatsch. Osaka graciously bowed and was getting ready for a handshake. The German instantly tried to explain to Osaka that she was not feeling well and did not want to pass on the sickness to her.

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Instead, the two players tapped their rackets and smiled at each other. In the video, Osaka appears to send her best wishes to the German, who nods in approval. Korpatsch then proceeded to fist-bump the chair umpire before walking away.

Osaka will now turn her attention to her second-round match against Karolina Pliskova, a three-time champion in Brisbane, who defeated the Japanese player during their last clash at this tournament in 2020 en route to the title.

The four-time Grand Slam champion acknowledged that some of her decision-making was not the best but was pleased with her performance against an opponent who played with nothing to lose.

"Honestly, I would prefer what I played. I think maybe some of my decisions weren't the best. But I think it's better to have harder matches because it will train me for what's to come."

"I know all the opponents I play aren't easy anyway, so it would be I don't want to say crazy, but very out there for me to think my first match would be a 6-1, 6-1."

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