Naomi Osaka, Caroline Wozniacki & Angelique Kerber will provide unbelievable excitement at 2024 Australian Open, says tournament director Craig Tiley

Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley has stated that he looking forward to welcoming Naomi Osaka, Caroline Wozniacki, and Angelique Kerber to the tournament after their long breaks.

Osaka has spent most of the 2023 season on the sidelines after announcing that she was pregnant with her first child. In July, she and her boyfriend, rapper Corade, announced that they became parents to a baby girl, who they named Shai.

Having announced her retirement following a third-round exit from the 2020 Australian Open, Wozniacki made her comeback to the sport during the North American hardcourt swing. She took part in the Canadian Open, Cincinnati Open, and US Open.

Kerber, on the other hand, announced last year that she was taking a break from the WTA tour after getting pregnant. After giving birth to her first child in February, she stated her plans to make a comeback at the start of the 2024 season, with a goal of playing at the Australian Open.

Tiley, speaking on the latest episode of The AO Show podcast, expressed excitement at three stars of the women's tour making their comebacks in Melbourne.

"We're gonna welcome back players we know that this is their favorite place to play. But not only that, they've had great success here. Naomi Osaka, really excited about her coming back. Angie Kerber, who's been out of it. And they've all given birth to their first child and really excited for them," he said.

"And of course, Caroline Wozniacki, who won her only Grand Slam here at the Australian Open, very exciting moment for her. So great to have them back and we know they've all been training and ready to play, and we'll give it a great start in January," he added.

Tiley further stated that the women's draw at the upcoming Australian Open will see a stacked field. Returning former World No. 1s like Osaka, Caroline, and Kerber are set to take on rising stars like Coco Gauff, Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka, among others.

"On the woman's side, you're going to have the greats of the game trying to bat away the younger players, they'd want to maintain that position. Coco Gauff, what a great US Open she had, coming in and arguably playing the best. Swiatek is also at the Australian Open, she'd love to go further than she's been before," he said.

"And you can't count out Salabenka, the No. 1 player in the world, and use the platform with success at the Australian Open 2023 to have a great year. So them and quite a few of the other players, the young and up-and-coming players, they're gonna provide some unbelievable excitement on the woman's draw," he added.

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Naomi Osaka sees Iga Swiatek overtake her in career prize money during her absence

Iga Swiatek is a four-time Grand Slam champion.

Thanks to being out of action for most of the 2023 season, Naomi Osaka has seen Iga Swiatek overtake her in career prize money.

Swiatek recently won the China Open title, her fifth of the year, defeating Liudmila Samsonova 6-2, 6-2 in the final in Beijing. This saw her win $1,324,000 in prize money, taking her career earnings to an estimated $21,514,763.

With it, the World No. 2 surpassed Osaka, whose overall prize money currently stands at $21,177,252. She trails only Elina Svitolina and Ashleigh Barty in the WTA U-30 category right now.