Naomi Osaka withdrawal, statement, women’s draw, latest

Naomi Osaka has withdrawn from the French Open following the bitter fallout from her decision to boycott all media activity at the Grand Slam event, revealing she has “suffered long bouts of depression” and will “take some time away from the court”.

“The best thing for the tournament, the other players and my wellbeing is that I withdraw so that everyone can get back to focusing on the tennis going on in Paris,” the world number two wrote on Twitter.

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The 23-year-old Japanese star was fined $15,000 on Sunday and threatened with disqualification after she refused to carry out a mandatory news conference following her first round win.

She claimed on the eve of Roland Garros that such post-match inquests were akin to “kicking people when they are down” and that they had a detrimental effect on her mental health.

“I never wanted to be a distraction and I accept that my timing was not ideal and my message could have been clearer,” the four-time Grand Slam title winner said in her statement.

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“The truth is I have suffered bouts of depression since the US Open in 2018 and I have had a really hard time coping with that.”

She added: “In Paris, I was already feeling vulnerable and anxious so I thought it was better to exercise self-care and skip the press conferences.

“I announced it pre-emptively because I do feel like the rules are quite outdated in parts and I wanted to highlight that.

“I am going to take some time away from the court now.”

Osaka said she has also apologised to organisers over the affair which has dominated the early stages of the French Open ever since she warned last week that she would not carry out any media activity.

Tennis legend Martina Navratilova said she fully supported Osaka’s decision. “I truly hope she will be ok. As athletes we are taught to take care of our body, and perhaps the mental & emotional aspect gets short shrift,” tweeted Navratilova.

“This is about more than doing or not doing a press conference. Good luck Naomi – we are all pulling for you!” French Tennis Federation president Gilles Moretton had described her vow of silence as “a phenomenal error”.

The four Grand Slam events — Wimbledon, the French, Australian and US Opens — said they had written to Osaka “to check on her wellbeing and offer support”.

“She was also reminded of her obligations, the consequences of not meeting them and that rules should equally apply to all players.”

HIGHEST EARNING FEMALE ATHLETE

Osaka is the world’s highest earning female athlete, making $37.4 million in 2020.

She burst onto the scene in 2018 with a maiden Slam win at the US Open. She has gone on to win another title in New York as well as two Australian Opens.

Earlier Monday, Osaka’s coach said she wanted to use her superstar status to force change with her media boycott.

“Naomi has the opportunity to use her status to address problems and to initiate things,” Osaka’s Belgian coach Wim Fissette told German magazine Der Spiegel.

“In the United States, the subject is very topical at the moment, as athletes want more freedom in dealing with the press.

“So that they are simply not threatened right away with punishment if they don’t feel well for a day.”

Mari Osaka, a former player herself, said her sister was struggling to cope in the run-up to Paris.

“Naomi mentioned to me before the tournament that a family member had come up to her and remarked that she’s bad on clay,” Mari wrote on Reddit.

“At every press conference she’s told she has a bad record on clay.

“When she lost in Rome, she was not OK mentally. She was completely shattered and I think everyone’s remarks and opinions have gotten to her head and she herself believed that she was bad on clay.”

America’s Sonia Kenin, meanwhile, said she sympathised.

“I feel like everyone’s dealing with their own stuff. I can’t really add much to that as I just found out right before coming to press. My phone is blowing up.”