Tokyo fans came out to cheer for one of Japan’s biggest sports stars. A teenager from Slovakia spoiled the party.
Naomi Osaka lost 6 to 3, 7 to 5 to Mia Pohankova of Slovakia in the round of 16 at the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo on Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026.
Who beat Naomi Osaka?
Pohankova turned 18 last week and entered the tournament with a wild card. She won the junior singles title at Wimbledon in 2025. Wild cards are invitations that let players enter a tournament without qualifying on ranking.
Her win over the seventh seed sends her to the quarterfinals, where she will face American Alycia Parks. Parks is known for one of the biggest serves in the women’s game.
It was one of the biggest wins of Pohankova’s young career and a sign that she is quickly adjusting to the top level of the sport. Junior champions often take years to break through on the WTA Tour, making her rapid rise especially notable.
How had Naomi Osaka played in Tokyo?
Naomi Osaka came in with momentum after beating Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in the first round.
Playing at home gave Osaka extra support from the crowd, but she could not hold off the teenager in a tight second set. The first set slipped away after Pohankova broke serve, and the teenager held her nerve late in the second to close out the match.
Osaka has a long history with the event and won the Pan Pacific Open in 2019. That title came in a season when she also won the Australian Open and rose to No. 1.
What else happened in Tokyo?
Elena Rybakina, the tournament’s top player, beat Yulia Putintseva 6 to 2, 6 to 3, and Canada’s Leylah Fernandez defeated 14th seed Elise Mertens 6 to 2, 7 to 6. Rybakina, a former Wimbledon champion, has been one of the most consistent players this fall. Fernandez, a former U.S. Open finalist, needed a tiebreaker to close out the second set.
Two seeded players withdrew before the round of 16. Second seed Maja Chwalinska pulled out with a left thigh injury, and fourth seed Belinda Bencic withdrew with a right ankle injury. Withdrawals have piled up as players deal with the wear of a long season.
Chwalinska won the Wuhan Open earlier this month, and Bencic lost in Ningbo last week.
What is Naomi Osaka’s career like?
Naomi Osaka has won four Grand Slam singles titles, two at the U.S. Open and two at the Australian Open. In 2019, she became the first Asian player to reach No. 1 in the world.
She took time away from the sport and returned in 2024 after giving birth to her daughter. She has since worked her way back toward the top of the rankings. Her comeback has been closely followed by fans in Japan and around the world.
Osaka, whose mother is Japanese and whose father is Haitian, is one of the most recognizable athletes in Japan and has used her platform to speak out on social justice and mental health. She has also been open about the pressures of fame, a conversation that helped change how athletes talk about mental health.
What is next for Naomi Osaka?
The season is winding down, and Osaka will look to finish strong in the final events of the year. Results in these last tournaments can help shape a player’s ranking heading into next season.
For Naomi Osaka, the loss was a disappointing end to her week in front of home fans, while it marked a breakthrough for a rising star.
