The WTA 250 Prudential Hong Kong Tennis Open organizers announced on Tuesday that Naomi Osaka, a former world No. 1 and four-time grand slam tournament champion, will compete this month.
Osaka joins a group that also includes former US Open champion Emma Raducanu, British No. 1 Katie Boulter, reigning champion Leylah Fernandez, and Simona Halep, another former world No. 1.
Two weeks after being forced to retire due to a back injury during her round-of-16 match at the China Open in Beijing, Osaka has confirmed her participation in the Hong Kong event at Victoria Park.
The 26-year-old was also forced to withdraw from last week’s Wuhan Open, the Kinoshita Group Japan Open in Osaka, which began on Monday, and her hometown tournament due to the injury.
After that, Osaka stated that she intends to compete in the Toray Pan Pacific Open Tennis in Tokyo the following week, provided her physician gives the all-clear before her focus shifts to Hong Kong.
Naomi Osaka in 2024
Now ranked no.57, the Japanese played her last match on the 1st of October when she had to retire when playing against world no.3 Cori Gauff in the 4th round and the scoreline was 3-6 6-4 .
Currently, during this year Osaka owns a 22-18 win-loss record.
Naomi Osaka will square off with the world no.877 Anna Danilina in the . They have never played each other as of now in top competitions.
Osaka won 7 titles in her career: all of them conquered on hard courts. (See the list of her titles)
Leylah Fernandez in 2024
Now the world no.34, the Canadian played her last match on the 10th of October when she lost to world no.7 Qinwen Zheng 5-7 6-3 6-0 in the 3rd round in Wuhan (draw).
Currently, during this season Leylah has a composed 26-22 match record. Leylah Fernandez’s best performance of the present year was getting to the final in Eastbourne.
Leylah Fernandez will square off with the world no.71 Renata Zarazua in the semifinal on Friday at 8:00 pm on ESTADIO. Their current head to head is 2-0 for Fernandez.
Fernandez was the runner-up in Eastbourne (Rothesay International).
Fernandez will play next in Tokyo (Toray Pan Pacific Open). She will start the tournament from the main draw that will commence on the 21st of October.
Naomi Osaka and Leylah Fernandez clashed against each other just once. Their head to head is 1-0 for Fernandez. When they played, Leylah Fernandez won 5-7 7-6(2) 6-4 in the 3rd round in New York (U.S. Open) in September 2021.
You can watch the highlights in the following video.
Emma Raducanu in 2024
Now ranked no.54, the Brit played her last match on the 21st of September when she had to retire when playing against world no.11 Darya Kasatkina in the quarter and the scoreline was 6-1 .
At present, during this year the Brit has a 20-13 win-loss record. Emma Raducanu’s most significant result of this year was reaching the semifinal in Nottingham.
Simona Halep in 2024
Now the world no.876, Halep played her last match on the 3rd of October when she lost to world no.99 Anna Blinkova 6-2 6-1 in the 2nd
round of the Hong Kong 125 Open Hong Kong (draw).Presently, during this year Simona has a 1-3 win-loss record.
Emma Raducanu and Simona Halep have never played each other as of now on the main tour.
Naomi Osaka, Leylah Fernandez, Emma Raducanu and Simona Halep |
| Embed from Getty Images |
Naomi Osaka in 2024
Now the world no.57, Osaka played her last match on the 1st of October when she had to retire when playing against world no.3 Cori Gauff in the 4th round and the scoreline was 3-6 6-4 .
Until now, during this year Osaka has managed to achieve a 22-18 record.
Naomi Osaka will compete against the world no.877 Anna Danilina in the . In the past, they have never played each other as of now in top competitions.
The Japanese won 7 titles in her career: all of them conquered on hard courts. (See the list of her titles)
Leylah Fernandez in 2024
Now ranked no.34, Leylah played her last match on the 10th of October when she surrendered to world no.7 Qinwen Zheng 5-7 6-3 6-0 in the 3rd round in Wuhan (draw).
Currently, during this year the Canadian has managed to achieve a 26-22 match record. Leylah Fernandez’s best result of this season was getting to the final in Eastbourne.
Leylah Fernandez will take on the world no.71 Renata Zarazua in the semifinal on Friday at 8:00 pm on ESTADIO. The head to head is 2-0 for Fernandez.
Fernandez was the finalist in Eastbourne (Rothesay International).
Fernandez has scheduled to play next in Tokyo (Toray Pan Pacific Open). She will start the tournament from the main draw that will commence on the 21st of October.
Naomi Osaka and Leylah Fernandez squared off just once. Their record is 1-0 for Fernandez. When they played, Leylah Fernandez won 5-7 7-6(2) 6-4 in the 3rd round in New York (U.S. Open) in September 2021.
In the following video you can watch the key moments of their match.
Emma Raducanu in 2024
Currently the world no.54, Raducanu played her last match on the 21st of September when she had to retire when playing against world no.11 Darya Kasatkina in the quarter and the scoreline was 6-1 .
Until now, during this year Raducanu has a 20-13 win-loss record. Emma Raducanu’s best achievement of the current year was getting to the semifinal in Nottingham.
Simona Halep in 2024
Ranked world no.876, Halep played her last match on the 3rd of October when she surrendered to world no.99 Anna Blinkova 6-2 6-1 in the 2nd round of the Hong Kong 125 Open Hong Kong (draw).
At present, during this year Halep has a 1-3 win-loss record.
Emma Raducanu and Simona Halep have never played each other as of now in top events.
Naomi Osaka, Leylah Fernandez, Emma Raducanu and Simona Halep |
| Embed from Getty Images |