Due to illness, defending champion Naomi Osaka had to withdraw from the 2022 Pan Pacific Open just before her second-round match. Osaka released a statement saying she was truly sorry she couldn't keep playing. She mentioned that it's always a privilege to compete at the Toray Pan Pacific Open and play for the wonderful fans in Japan, a tournament that remains incredibly significant to her. While she wished she could have played, her health made it impossible. Despite feeling fit and healthy before the start of the tournament, she didn't specify what illness caused the withdrawal.
After claiming the title in 2019, Osaka had managed to get through the first round this week when Daria Saville withdrew due to a knee problem. However, her subsequent exit benefited Brazil's fifth seed, Beatriz Haddad Maia, who will now take on Veronika Kudermetova in the quarterfinals. The Russian player, Kudermetova, cruised into the quarter-finals after a dominant 6-0, 6-1 win against the Mexican qualifier Fernanda Contreras Gomez.
In another second-round encounter, Croatia's Petra Martic caused an upset by defeating sixth seed Karolina Pliskova 6-3, 6-4. In a battle between two unseeded athletes, Russia's Liudmila Samsonova edged out China's Xinyu Wang with a 7-6 (5), 6-3 score. Samsonova, ranked 30th and currently on a hot streak with 15 wins in her last 16 matches, is scheduled to face the third seed, Garbine Muguruza, in the next round.
The 31-year-old Martic remained composed as the 2018 champion, Pliskova, struggled to find her rhythm as the match went on. The former world No. 1 appeared uncomfortable and far from her peak form. In contrast, Martic was consistent throughout the game, breaking Pliskova's serve twice in each set, including the closing games. The match ended when Pliskova committed her fifth double fault, effectively gifting the win to her opponent.
The final stats show Pliskova had 23 winners against 25 unforced errors, while Martic recorded 17 winners and 22 unforced errors. Ultimately, it was Pliskova's inability to capitalize on key opportunities that led to her defeat.
With this victory, the Croatian player broke a two-match losing streak against Pliskova, now leading their head-to-head record 4-3 at the tour level. Martic's next challenge will be Zhang Shuai in her fourth quarterfinal appearance of the year.