Coco Gauff sent a classy message to Naomi Osaka after their match was cut short due to injury.

The pair’s China Open round of 16 tie was their first clash since 2022 and it did not disappoint.

Osaka and Gauff threw everything they had at each other as they battled for a place in the quarter-finals in Beijing.

After the American levelled the match at a set apiece, disaster struck and the crowd were left stunned after Osaka retired from their China Open contest due to injury.

What did Coco Gauff say about Naomi Osaka’s injury?

Naomi Osaka opened up a 3-1 lead in the first set but after Coco Gauff broke back to reduce the deficit to 3-2, Osaka called for the trainer during the next changeover.

But the four-time Grand Slam champion claimed three of the next four games to win the set as Gauff continued to make errors.

The second set was closely fought and Gauff opened up a 2-0 lead, but Osaka fought her way back and broke the World number six’s serve to go up 4-3.

But Gauff would not be denied as Osaka struck her first double fault of the match on break point to hand the advantage back and she lost two games as the 20-year-old levelled the match.

This was all Osaka could manage as she retired from the match with a lower back injury and Gauff advanced to the quarter-finals.

“It was a good match until this point. I wish Naomi a speedy recovery,” Gauff said during her on-court interview. “Nobody wants to win a match like this, especially at one set all. Overall I tried my best, it wasn’t my best tennis but it’s one of those matches where you try your best each point.

“It’s cool to be back here in the quarter-finals here in Beijing. I’ve been playing the late match everyday so maybe I’ll get sunshine in the next match, I don’t know, we’ll see what the schedule allows. But I’m just happy to be here in Beijing and play in front of you guys.”

Coco Gauff reaches the China Open quarter-finals once again

For the second successive year, Gauff has reached the last eight at the China Open.

This is her first tournament under new coach Matt Daly, who wants Gauff to improve her serve and be more aggressive from the baseline.

Gauff is using these tournaments toward the end of the season to put those things into practice, and she even admitted that she did not expect to get as far as the quarter-finals in the Chinese capital.

“I’m not focused on results at all at this point in the season,” Gauff said. “It’s one of those sacrifices. It’s great to be in the quarters, I probably didn’t expect it to be honest.

“But it’s one of those things where you sacrifice to get better in the long term. I’m treating this tournament as practice and everything is a plus.”