Former World Number One Naomi Osaka Announces Pregnancy, Taking Break from Tennis until 2024

- World Soccer Today -

Former world number one tennis player Naomi Osaka has announced that she is pregnant and will be taking a break from the sport until 2024. 

She shared the news on Twitter with a picture of a pregnancy scan and added that she is looking forward to her child watching her matches and saying "that's my mom". 

Osaka has not played a match since September and her withdrawal from the upcoming Australian Open had puzzled many. 

This is the reason for her absence. Her last tournament was the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo in September where she withdrew due to abdominal pain before her second-round match.

The Japanese player, who grew up in the United States and was the top-ranked player in the world in 2019, is now currently ranked 47th in the world. 

Osaka has won four Grand Slam singles titles, including the Australian Open in 2019 and 2021 and the US Open in 2018 and 2020. 

Despite her on-court struggles last year, she was named the highest earning female athlete for 2022 by Forbes, with reported earnings of $51.1 million. In a statement on Wednesday, she mentioned that her time away from the sport has given her a new appreciation for the game and that she realizes that life is short and to not take any moments for granted.