Mari Osaka, the older sister of megastar Naomi Osaka, has retired from tennis at just 24.
Osaka said that she hadn't enjoyed her career, which peaked with a world No.280 ranking three years ago.
"I am retired from playing tennis. It was a journey which I didn't enjoy ultimately but I'm grateful for all the memories and support I've gained and received over the years from the sport. I'm moving on now so you can look forward to new fun projects upcoming in the future," she wrote on Instagram.
Osaka played most of her career on the lower-tier ITF circuit and is currently ranked No.340 in the world. Her peak ranking of 280 came in 2018.
She crossed paths professionally with her famous sister, the four-time Grand Slam winner, at the 2019 Miami Open. It was their first main draw together at a WTA event, though wildcard entry Mari lost in the first round to Whitney Osuigwe, 6-2 6-4.
Naomi Osaka revealed then that Mari had regularly smashed her at tennis when they were growing up.
"Up until I was 15 she was 6-0-ing me, ridiculous," Naomi told The New York Times.
"I don't know what happened, maybe finally something clicked in my head, but for sure she was beating me. In the win-loss record, she's up by like a million or something."
At that point, Naomi voiced her hopes of playing more events together.
"For me it would be a dream," she said. "Because I don't really talk to that many people, and she's the nicer one in this relationship. It would definitely mean a lot."
Mari Osaka played just one match this year, back in January, losing in straight sets to Sarah Hamner in the first round of qualifying at an ITF tournament in Georgia. Naomi Osaka last month won her second Australian Open title.
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