Tennis
Naomi Osaka Wants to Take a Break from Tennis After US Open Loss
by privatebet.com - 2021/09/04
2021 has been a pretty rocky year for Naomi Osaka, and she failed to turn things around at the US Open. The defending champion lost to the Canadian teen Leylah Fernandez in the third round of the tournament, and she’s considering stepping away from tennis. Osaka’s latest match was a wild rollercoaster, and it was pretty obvious she struggled to keep her composure. She repeatedly smacked her racquet to the ground, took too much time between the points, and her downward spiral eventually lead to a 5-7 7-6 6-4 loss against the 18-year-old Fernandez. The future of Osaka’s career hangs in the balance after this devastating defeat. During a post-match press conference, she apologized for her behavior, admitting she feels “very anxious” when things don’t go her way, and revealed she’s considering an indefinite hiatus from tennis. “I feel like I’m kind of at this point where I’m trying to figure out what I want to do. Honestly, I don’t know when I’m going to play my next tennis match. I think I’m going to take a break from playing for a while,” said the teary-eyed Osaka. The US Open is Osaka’s first Grand Slam tournament since her withdrawal from the French Open due to mental health reasons. She also set out Wimbledon but made an appearance at the Tokyo Olympics, where she was eliminated in the third round.