Osaka pulls out of Wimbledon citing injury and points

Amid concerns about both her leg and the tournament’s significance, Naomi Osaka will not compete at Wimbledon.

The four-time Grand Slam champion withdrew Saturday, citing the left Achilles injury she suffered at the Madrid Open. She played with tape on her ankle during a first-round loss at the French Open in May.

“[M]y Achilles still isn’t right so I’ll see you next time,” Osaka tweeted Saturday, along with a note suggesting she’s trying to cope with “stressful times” right now.

Osaka, the former World No. 1, hinted last month that she might skip Wimbledon regardless of her Achilles because ranking points won’t be awarded this year at the tournament, which will run from June 27-July 10. The ATP and WTA announced the change because Wimbledon has banned Russian and Belarusian players after their countries’ invasion of Ukraine.

“I’m not sure why, but I feel like if I play Wimbledon without points, it’s more like an exhibition,” Osaka told reporters after her French Open loss. “I know this isn’t true, right? But my brain just like feels that way. Whenever I think something is like an exhibition, I just can’t go at it 100 percent. I didn’t even make my decision yet, but I’m leaning more towards not playing given the current circumstances, but that might change.”

Eugenie Bouchard also will not play at Wimbledon because it won’t affect the rankings.

“I don’t want to say pointless — no pun intended,” Osaka said at Roland Garros. “But I’m the type of player that gets motivated by, like, seeing my ranking go up or stuff like that.”