During a post-match interview at the U.S. Open last week, Naomi Osaka said her goodbyes to the sports she holds so dear with tear laden eyes. The decision may have stemmed from her shocking loss to defending champion Leyla Fernandez. This would be Naomi’s first loss since she withdrew from the French Open and Wimbledon earlier this year because of mental health concerns.
After her US Open defeat, Osaka spoke to the press about the sport she has dominated time and time again for many years. Osaka admits that her journey has become joyless, experiencing relief following her victories and sadness after losses. Towards the end of the interview, she speaks possibly her last public words in a tennis press event for the foreseeable future.
“This is very hard to articulate. Basically, I feel like I’m kind of at this point where I’m trying to figure out what I want to do, and I honestly don’t know when I’m going to play my next tennis match. Sorry.
I think I’m going to take a break from playing for awhile.
How do I go around saying this? I feel like for me recently when I win, I don’t feel happy. I feel more like a relief. And then when I lose, I feel very sad. I don’t think that’s normal. I didn’t really want to cry.”
When asked what could have caused her to lose the match, she added it was not a technicality of returning her opponent’s serves or being in an unfamiliar competition situation. She alludes that “we’re all dealing with some stuff, but I know that I’m dealing with some stuff.”
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It is unclear how long Osaka’s hiatus from tennis will be, but she will not be returning to the courts soon, as she struggles to find the meaning of playing the game she has reigned for years.We’ll keep you posted as more on this story develops. In other news, Microsoft Reveals They’ve Never Made Profit Off Xbox Console Sales.
