Naomi Osaka concedes she's "worried a little bit" after sustaining a left leg injury that forced her to retire from the Cincinnati quarterfinals.
The world No. 1 took a medical timeout trailing 2-0 in the final set vs. Sofia Kenin.
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Osaka had her left leg taped and tried to continue but could not push off her leg and retired with Kenin holding a 6-4, 1-6, 2-0 lead. The reigning US Open champion appeared to be pained by a left knee issue, but said medical staff have not yet determined the exact injury.
"I mean it sucks. Especially since I didn't want to, like, get injured this close to the Open," Osaka told the media afterward. "And now I'm kind of, like, worried a little bit. You know, she was playing well. I had to, like, really think about what I had to do during the match, so I'm not that, like, mad at the result. Like, the injured part sucks, but losing, it's not that big of a deal."
The two-time Grand Slam champion said she has "no idea" the extent of her injury and will undergo an MRI.
"Literally we don't know what was going on," Osaka said. "They were trying to figure it out. So I was asking her if it was safe to play, because I really hate withdrawing. Like, I don't know. I feel like we were playing such a great match, too.
"It's not fair to her to just, like, withdraw, because I feel like I'm bowing out. Then I was asking her, like, if she thinks it's safe to play. Then I went out there. I wanted to finish the set. But I felt this, like it wasn't safe."
Photo credit: @CincyTennis