Naomi Osaka makes victorious return from injury in Auckland

Japanese star wins after almost three months on sidelines

Namoi Osaka during the ASB Classic at Manuka Doctor Arena in Auckland. AP

Four-time major champion Naomi Osaka made a winning return to the court after an almost three-month absence in the first round of the ASB Classic in Auckland.

Osaka defeated qualifier Lina Glushko 6-4, 6-4 in a tight contest in her first match since October when a back injury at the China Open ended her 2024 season.

Osaka displayed a powerful serve and forceful ground strokes, suggesting she is comfortable with no sign of her recent injury.

She had to deal with a swirling wind on centre court and a long break as she was poised to serve out the first set when Glushko had to leave the court for treatment to a hip injury.

The Japanese star has struggled for consistency since returning to the court a year ago after the birth of daughter Shai in July 2023. Now ranked 57, she had said she is confident of regaining her touch.

Now under the wing of Serena Williams' long-time coach Patrick Mouratoglou, the 27-year-old put in a solid performance in Auckland.

She did have to dig deep, with Glushko making her work hard in the rallies. Osaka converted the only break point she had in a tight first set and raced to a 3-1 lead in the second.

But Glushko then reeled off three games in a row before Osaka regrouped to win the next three in windy conditions for the 85-minute victory.

“It was good to have to, I guess, scrap a little for the first round,” Osaka said.

“I just kept trying to tell myself ‘one point at a time,’ and try not to get discouraged. Thankfully, it came out in my favour at the end.”

Meanwhile, Iga Swiatek sealed an emphatic victory in her season-opening match of the United Cup.

Five-time Grand Slam winner Swiatek was on court for the first time since news broke in late November that she served a one-month ban for a doping offence. But the Pole quickly shook off any nerves in Sydney with a 6-1, 6-0 thrashing of Norway's Malene Helgo, needing just 62 minutes for the demolition job.

“Pleased with everything, honestly. I'm happy for sure with the performance,” said the world No 2.

“It's not always easy to play for your country, sometimes the pressure is a bit bigger.

“I feel good, I feel happy, happy I can play tennis overall,” she added. “I'm just going step by step and we'll see what's next.”

Swiatek, 23, tested positive for the heart medication trimetazidine (TMZ) in an out-of-competition sample in August when she was ranked No 1 in the world. However, the International Tennis Integrity Agency accepted that the infringement was not intentional and she escaped with a one-month sanction.

Hers is not the only doping controversy in tennis at the moment, though. Earlier, Novak Djokovic had expressed his frustration at being “kept in the dark” about world No 1 Jannik Sinner's doping case.

Anti-doping authorities said in August that Sinner twice tested positive in March for the anabolic steroid clostebol and was cleared of wrongdoing by an independent tribunal that accepted his explanation of unintentional contamination.

The 23-year-old Italian faces a potential ban of up to two years after the World Anti-Doping Agency appealed against that decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

“It's not a good image and not a good look for our sport,” Djokovic said in Brisbane.

“You don't want to see that. I believe that in the last 20-plus years that I've been playing on the professional tour that we've been one of the cleanest sports. I'll keep believing in that clean sport.

“I'm just questioning the way the system works, really, and why certain players are not treated the same as other players.”