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Top tennis star Naomi Osaka suffers shocking defeat and is knocked out of the Tokyo Games

Jul 27, 2021, 18:02 IST
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Naomi Osaka, of Japan, reacts after losing a point to Marketa Vondrousova, of the Czech Republic, during the third round of the tennis competition at the 2020 Summer Olympics, Tuesday, July 27, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan Seth Wenig/AP Photo
  • The tennis star Naomi Osaka has been eliminated from the Olympics.
  • Osaka suffered a shocking upset to Marketa Vondrousova, 6-1, 6-4.
  • Osaka was a gold-medal favorite entering the Tokyo Games.
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The top tennis star and Olympic gold-medal favorite Naomi Osaka is out of the Tokyo Olympics after a shocking loss on Tuesday.

Osaka, who was playing for Japan, fell to the Czech player Marketa Vondrousova in straight sets, 6-1, 6-4, on Tuesday.

This means she's out of the running for the gold medal in Tokyo.

Osaka, ranked No. 2 in the world, was viewed as Japan's Olympic favorite in women's tennis singles.

She was the athlete who carried the Olympic flame to light the cauldron during the opening ceremony on Friday.

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Osaka spoke briefly with members of the media after her match.

"I feel like I should be used to it by now. But, at the same time, the scale of everything has been a bit hard because of the break that I took. I am glad I didn't lose in the first round at least," Osaka said, per ITV News.

Osaka added that despite her loss, she was glad to be at the Tokyo Games.

"I am sad I lost, of course, but all in all, I am really happy with my first Olympic experience," she said.

Her opponent Vondrousova, ranked No. 42, said she felt "really good" about her match with Osaka from the get-go.

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"I just had to believe in myself from the beginning," Vondrousova said after her win, per NBC News.

NBC News reported that Osaka appeared nervous when she started off the match at the Ariake Tennis Park. She lost the first set to Vondrousova within 24 minutes, after some shaky rallies.

Osaka did better during the top of the second set, pulling ahead of her Czech rival by two games. But Vondrousova fought back and overtook Osaka, breaking her serve on the last point to clinch the win.

This was the third match that Osaka played at the Tokyo Games. She beat the Swiss player Viktorija Golubic in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2, on Monday.

And on Sunday, she beat China's Zheng Saisai, 6-1, 6-4, in the first round.

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That match was Osaka's first time back on the court after a two-month break. She withdrew from the French Open on June 1 after she was fined $15,000 for not attending a post-match press conference.

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