MASON, Ohio — Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka was eliminated by Shuai Zhang 6-4, 7-5 in the first round of the Western & Southern Open on Tuesday.
The tournament near Cincinnati lost another big name, Coco Gauff, when she retired from her match against qualifier Marie Bouzkova with a left ankle injury. Gauff had her ankle taped after the first set and dropped out after the first game of the second set.
The marquee match scheduled for Tuesday night at this hard-court US Open tuneup was Serena Williams against Emma Raducanu, last year’s champion at Flushing Meadows. Williams announced last week that she is transitioning away from tennis, although she has not said explicitly that the US Open will be her last tournament.
Karolina Pliskova advanced with a 7-5, 6-1 win over Williams’ older sister, Venus.
Belinda Bencic, who beat Serena Williams last week in Canada, fell to Sorana Cirstea 6-2, 6-7 (3), 6-4.
Rafael Nadal, sidelined since withdrawing from Wimbledon with an abdominal tear, practiced before a large crowd. The 22-time Grand Slam champion is scheduled to play a second-round match on Wednesday.
In a men’s first-round match, Wimbledon finalist Nick Kyrgios beat Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 7-5, 6-4.