Osaka lauded by journalist for being considerate and not withdrawing after qualifying for Australian Open

Naomi Osaka was lauded by leading journalist Ben Rothenberg for the way she handled her withdrawal from the Australian Open allowing a player to take her place.

Osaka withdrew before qualifying began which allowed another player to compete at the Australian Open and earn a living. It's something that tennis players have not been practicing in generally opting to wait and withdrawing only after the event began creating a dead space in the full draw.

By doing it this way, Ekaterina Makarova who is ranked 230 in the world was able to get into the event and earn 26.000 dollars as prize money which is notable for a player who is ranked outside of the top 200. Had Osaka elected to wait it out as most players do, Makarova would have never gotten in.

Rothenberg praised her for the decision on Twitter:

"Credit to Naomi for withdrawing before qualifying began, which allows another player the chance to compete at #AusOpen and earn some much needed prize money.It will be #230 Ekaterina Makarova (a new one born in 1996) who gets in and earns at least $26,000."