French Open 2021: Osaka Naomi’s withdrawal, media boycotts, reactions, tennis news

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After facing strong opposition from the media, Naomi Osaka made a sensational decision to withdraw from the French Open.

Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka has already withdrawn from the French Open in a sensational manner.

The world’s second-ranked Australian Eastern Standard Time issued a statement on Tuesday morning confirming that she will no longer participate in the competition Decided to boycott the French Open press conference Caused controversy.

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“Hello everyone, this is not the situation I imagined or planned when I posted a few days ago. I think the best thing for the game, other players and my happiness now is that I quit so that everyone can refocus on Paris. Tennis match,” she wrote on social media.

“I never wanted to be distracted. I admit that my timing is not ideal. My message could have been clearer. More importantly, I would never underestimate mental health or use the term lightly.

“The truth is that since the 2018 U.S. Open, I have suffered from depression for a long time, and it is really difficult for me to deal with it. Anyone who knows me knows that I am introverted. Wear headphones, because it helps to ease my social anxiety.

“Although the tennis media has always been very good to me (I especially want to apologize to all the cool reporters I may have hurt), I am not a natural public speaker, and I feel anxious before talking to the world media. I really do. I’m very nervous, and I feel stressed to always try to participate and give you the best answer possible.”

Osaka explained why she announced her pre-match media boycott and added that she will be away from tennis for a while.

Osaka wrote: “So in Paris, I already feel fragile and anxious, so I think it’s better to maintain self-care and skip the press conference.” “I announced it preemptively because I do feel that the rules are already in some ways. Outdated, I want to emphasize this point.

“I wrote privately to apologize to the game and said that I would be happy to talk to them after the game because the Grand Slam is very intense.

“I will be away from the stadium for a while now, but when the time comes, I really want to work with the tour to discuss how we can make the lives of players, media and fans better.”

Osaka’s appeal sparked fierce controversy

Osaka’s decision Resist her media promise in Paris — On the grounds of lack of care for athletes’ mental health — Splitting the Tennis World With authority figures out loud to defend the media, other players kept their distance from the Japanese star.

Ash Barty, Rafael Nadal, Iga Swiatek and Kei Nishikori are all top players, and they all said that media interviews are part of the job, And the Four Grand Slams took a sensational step towards issuing a joint statement Threatened to disqualify Osaka If she fails to fulfill her media obligations.

Osaka defeated Romania’s Patricia Teague on Sunday night to advance to the second round of the French Open, where she will face the 102nd ranked Anna Bogdan in the world.

The 23-year-old player was subsequently fined $15,000 (A$19,385) for not attending the press conference after winning the first round.

Osaka was censored for avoiding media interviews, and many tennis experts at the time interpreted her initial statement as a way that she did not want her self-esteem to be compromised by sharp questions about her record on clay.

Reporter Ben Rothenberg outlines this view No challenge left podcast.

“When I read this (Osaka’s statement), my first thought was,’Wow, her confidence in entering the French Open must be too low.’ She is envisioning what the defeat there will look like, or for herself Be prepared for the loss instead of going out to win the third consecutive Grand Slam,” Rosenberg said.

“She can’t feel participating in the French Open, she can’t feel it.”

Patrick McEnroe, who won the French Open doubles title in 1989, told Good Morning America Osaka deserves “a lot of praise” for emphasizing mental health and other issues, but as a professional tennis player, she needs to fulfill her obligations.

Sister tries to clarify Naomi’s position

Osaka’s sister Marie, who herself is also a former professional tennis player, participated in the debate On Monday, she said there were internal doubts behind her siblings’ decision to boycott the media. Mary added that Osaka wanted to “stop everything.”

“When she lost the game in Rome r1, she was in a bad state of mind. Her confidence was completely shattered. I think everyone’s speech and opinions were dazzled by her, and she herself thinks she is on clay. Poor performance,” Mary wrote online.

“This is not true. She knows that in order to do a good job and have a chance to win the French Open, she must believe that she can do it. This is the first step that any athlete needs to do and believe in herself.

“So her solution is to stop everything. Don’t talk to people who (sic) would doubt her. She is protecting her mind, so it is called mental health.”

However, Mary quickly deleted her post and apologized after sparking a huge backlash. People questioned why Osaka talked about mental health when she seemed to want to avoid criticism of her performance.

“Well, I messed up. For many people who think taking care of mental health is strategic, my words are terrible,” Mary wrote.

“I didn’t emphasize in my post that Naomi is dealing with a lot of s**t and fighting honestly for mental health, so now many people think it is’she doesn’t want to hear criticism’.”

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