Naomi Osaka Opponent Reveals Bizarre China Open Incident

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BEIJING, CHINA – OCTOBER 02: Maria Timofeeva of Uzbekistan reacts against Naomi Osaka of Japan in the Women’s Singles second round match on day three of China Open at the National Tennis Center on October 02, 2026 in Beijing, China. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)

Maria Timofeeva’s China Open debut already had enough drama after she pushed four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka to three sets.

What happened after the match was even stranger.

Timofeeva revealed on social media that her watch disappeared from her tennis bag while she was showering following her second-round loss to Osaka in Beijing. The 22-year-old initially described the incident as theft before later announcing the matter was resolved.

“Getting my watch stolen from the locker room at a 1000 event wasn’t on my bingo card this year,” Timofeeva wrote on her Instagram Story.

She added that she had left her tennis bag unattended for only about 10 minutes while taking a shower.

Timofeeva even found some humor in the situation, joking that she was “accepting my fate of being a victim of all kinds of thefts as my part-time hobby.”

But the story didn’t end there.

Maria Timofeeva Reveals Unexpected Update

Timofeeva returned to social media with another message after tournament officials became involved.

This time, her tone had changed.

“After my short time story yesterday about my watch being stolen in Beijing — the issue has been resolved,” Timofeeva wrote.

She apologized for creating any “mess and misunderstanding” surrounding the incident and made a point of thanking the China Open for its response.

“The tournament has been nothing but cooperative and helpful with me as soon as I addressed the issue,” she wrote. “Some stories do have happy ends and this is one of them.”

Timofeeva did not publicly detail how the situation was resolved or clarify precisely what happened to the watch.

That leaves an unusual ending to an incident that initially sounded like a security problem inside the players’ area at one of the biggest tournaments on the WTA calendar.

Her follow-up, however, made clear that she considered the matter closed.

Naomi Osaka Ends Timofeeva’s China Open Run

The locker-room drama followed Timofeeva’s encouraging China Open debut.

Ranked No. 68 entering Beijing, she defeated Darja Vidmanova in the opening round before drawing Osaka.

Timofeeva refused to make it easy.

Osaka took the opening set 6-3, but Timofeeva answered by winning the second by the same score. The former world No. 1 finally separated herself in the deciding set, closing out a 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 victory.

The defeat ended Timofeeva’s tournament, but her performance continued an impressive 2026 season in which she has steadily climbed the rankings.

Her China Open experience will nevertheless be remembered for more than what happened across the net from Osaka.

Timofeeva walked off court after testing one of the most accomplished players of her generation.

Then, somewhere between leaving her tennis bag unattended and returning from the shower, her watch disappeared.

Exactly what happened next remains unclear.

Timofeeva, at least, was happy with the ending.

Alder Almo is a veteran NBA reporter for Heavy.com, covering the New York Knicks, Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors. He brings over 20 years of experience across local and international media, including broadcast, print and digital. He previously covered the Knicks for Empire Sports Media and the NBA for Off the Glass. Originally from the Philippines, he is now based in Jersey City, New Jersey. More about Alder Almo