Belinda Bencic will face either Coco Gauff or Leylah Fernandez in the third round on her return to Grand Slam action at the Australian Open. Albeit it was in unfortunate circumstances as Naomi Osaka had to retire injured from their tie.

The 1-6, 6-1, 6-3 victory over Karolina Muchova allowed Osaka to reach the third round at a major tournament for the first time since the 2022 season.

Naomi Osaka’s second-round match at the Australian Open could not possibly have started in a worse way. All of 21 minutes in, she sailed a forehand service return well long and, just like

A lingering abdominal injury first sidelined her in October at a Beijing tournament match against Coco Gauff. She reached the finals of the 2025 ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand earlier this month, but retired during her match against Clara Tauson. Osaka says abdominal injuries are nothing new.

Much like the second-rounder between Emma Raducanu and Amanda Anisimova, this will be a battle between two sneaky-young veterans—Coco is still just 20, Leylah 22. In one of those pro-tour quirks, they had never played until United Cup; now they’ll meet twice in three weeks.