Naomi Osaka has skipped on the chance of competing at the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand, much to the disappointment to the tournament.
The four-time Grand Slam champion was a massive coup for the tournament, giving first announced her ambitions to play back in September. While this was great news for the New Zealand citizens and fans who would be attending the event, it would soon be reversed when the former number one decided to overturn her decision to compete in the United Cup for Japan.
The Japanese star has had a resurgence in 2025. Once the dominant force of WTA tennis, she stepped out of the picture to focus on becoming a mother and prioritising her mental health. Now back for good, she has reminded everyone of how good she is. A final at the Canadian Open showed that she was back to her best, with a defeat to a surprising winner in Victoria Mboko. She followed this up with a fabulous US Open semi-final. While a three-set defeat to Amanda Anisimova was a disappointing way to end her campaign, it showed that she was back to competing with the best. It was also the first time that she had reached the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam and not won the tournament, showcasing an impressive record.
Her commitment is most welcoming to Japan, who are set to challenge for the United Cup title. They are in a tough group with Great Britain and Greece. This results in Osaka facing off against strong opposition in former US Open champion Emma Raducanu and former world number three Maria Sakkari.
Disappointment in Osaka missing out, but new names to fill voidWhile Osaka will be a big miss for the event, they do still have some big names in play anyway. Most notably Elina Svitolina and Emma Navarro, two top 15 players that will go in as the favourites for glory in Auckland.
It was a huge delight for the tournament director, Nicolas Lamperin. “We are absolutely thrilled that both Elina and Emma indicated that they want to compete in Auckland,” Lamperin said. “I was pleasantly surprised when both spoke to me about playing, and their appearance will greatly strengthen the top of the order.”
Navarro last played in this event back in 2024 where she was defeated by the number one seed and eventual champion Coco Gauff. After a massive climb up the rankings, she is ready to once again take the world by storm and challenge for the title. “Auckland is awesome. I love it there,” Navarro said. “The fans are super-supportive and show a lot of love for us players which makes it enjoyable. Auckland is a really cool city. It’s beautiful, has good food, so there’s lots to like about Auckland.”
In that same competition, Svitolina was defeated in the final against the two-the Grand Slam champion despite taking the first set. It will be key preparation ahead of the first Grand Slam of the year in Melbourne, as both players look to kick off the 2026 campaign on a positive note. She will be competing in the event ahead of her husband, Gael Monfils, battling out in the ATP version.
The WTA event will commence on the 5th Januray-11th January, while the men’s event will closely follow on 12th January-17th January. Americans Iva Jovic and Venus Williams are also set to compete.
AloJapan.com