Naomi Osaka withdraws from 2021 French Open

According to Sheena McKenzie of CNN on Monday, women’s tennis star Naomi Osaka of Osaka, Japan has decided to withdraw from the 2021 French Open. However, the reason for Osaka’s withdrawal was not because of a physical injury. It is because she reportedly has some mental health issues at the moment, and felt uncomfortable participating in the post-match tennis press conferences.

Well, we all learned something about the rules of professional tennis this week. Apparently, the post-match press conferences are considered mandatory. Even though Osaka made her intentions clear that she would not be answering questions at press conferences before the French Open started, she was still fined $15,000 for not having a press conference after beating Patricia Tig of Romania 6-4, 7-6 following round one on Sunday.

It should be noted that Osaka did do her postgame on-court interview on Philippe Chatrier Stadium on Sunday, but apparently, this was not enough to please not only the French Tennis Federation, but those in charge of the United States Open, the Australian Open, and Wimbledon too. Following Osaka’s Sunday absence, those in charge of the majors put out a joint statement saying that further sanctions could exist (including expulsion) if Osaka continued not to co-operate.

This is not the first time Osaka was at the center of attention when it has come to withdrawing from a tournament. Last year at the U.S. Open tuneup in Flushing Meadows, Osaka withdrew to raise awareness of social justice issues. However, the tennis community supported Osaka, and the tournament was subsequently postponed for 24 hours. This time the French Tennis Federation decided not to support Osaka, and as a result, Ana Bogdan of Romania advances to the third round.

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As a sportswriter over the last decade, I have not had a chance to interview various high-performance athletes who have not given a reason at all for their decision not to make themselves available. However, in this case, Osaka, the number two player in the world and reigning Australian Open champion, did give a valid reason and it is those who made the controversial decision in ensuring the rules be implemented, who are now living with the consequences of Osaka’s decision. Mental health is and continues to be a serious disease that needs to be taken seriously. It is unfortunate that those in charge of the French Open did not show compassion toward Osaka in this particular case. As a result, it will now be interesting to see if Osaka ever returns to Roland Garros again.

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