Tennis star Naomi Osaka said Monday she is withdrawing from the French Open after refusing to speak to the media at the grand slam.
The four-time major winner posted a statement on Twitter saying she was pulling out so that „everyone can get back to focusing on the tennis going on in Paris,“ adding that she would „take some time away from the court.“ Osaka revealed she had „suffered long bouts of depression“ since winning her first Grand Slam title in 2018. Last Wednesday, citing mental health reasons, Osaka posted on social media she would not participate in any news conferences during the French Open, hoping that any fines she incurred would go toward a mental health charity. Following her straight-set victory on Sunday, Osaka was fined $15,000 for not talking to the media, Roland Garros announced in a statement. „This isn’t a situation I ever imagined or intended when I posted a few days ago,“ Osaka said in her statement. „I think now the best thing for the tournament, the other players and my well-being is that I withdraw so that everyone can get back to focusing on the tennis going on in Paris. „I never wanted to be a distraction and I accept that my timing was not ideal and my message could have been clearer. More importantly I would never trivialize mental health or use the term lightly. „The truth is that I have suffered long bouts of depression since the US Open in 2018 and I have had a really hard time coping with that. „Anyone that knows me knows I’m introverted, and anyone that has seen me at the tournaments will notice that I’m often wearing headphones as that helps dull my social anxiety. „Though the tennis press has always been kind to me (and I wanna apologize especially to all the cool journalists who I may have hurt), I am not a natural public speaker and get huge waves of anxiety before I speak to the world’s media.
