Naomi Osaka has opened up about the mental health issue which led to an emotional meltdown at the French Open two years ago.
Japan’s former WTA no. 1 who recently became a mother, told the Mountaintop Conversations podcast of her despair when she refused to give obligatory post-match interviews in Paris, 2021 and was fined USD 15,000.
The LA-based player has not competed since the US Open 11 months ago and has not advised when she might return – if at all – to the WTA .
“I didn’t know what mental health was,” she said.
“When you grow up nobody talks about it and I honestly think that the first time I heard about mental health was when I withdrew from Roland Garros.
“It’s not that I had a dark childhood or anything for that matter. style, it’s just that everything in my life was very focused on tennis.”
The four-time Grand Slam winner added: “So I felt that I closed myself off more and that my character changed, and I didn’t like that at all.
“So at that point I was thinking ‘I need to take a break, but I can’t take it because then I’ll get fined’.
“But then I thought I’d rather get the ticket than go through it with my energy.”
Main photo:- Roland Garros French Open Naomi Osaka down and out by Anne Parker International Sports Fotos Ltd
