Eighteen-year-old Canadian Victoria Mboko (WTA No. 85) and Japan’s Naomi Osaka (No. 49) have withdrawn from the WTA‑1000 tournament in Cincinnati.
Both withdrawals came after their final meeting at the equivalent tournament in Montreal, where Mboko made a comeback 2–6, 6–4, 6–1 victory.
I just want to take care of my wrist a little bit right now. I think I'm just going to sit out on that one and prepare for the upcoming tournaments.
Osaka cited a change of schedule as her reason for pulling out.
Both players moved directly into the second round in Cincinnati because they reached the final in Montreal — a provision allowed under the WTA performance bye protocol. As a result, the first-round matches were played by the top lucky losers from qualifying.
Now Russian Diana Shnaider will face the winner of Cristina Bucsa (Spain) vs. Yuan Yue (China), while Linda Noskova (Czech Republic) will meet the victor of Solana Sierra (Argentina) vs. Iva Jovic (USA).
