Naomi Osaka discusses putting her tennis career on ‘pause’
According to journalist Ben Rothenberg, Naomi Osaka is considering putting her tennis career on hold after missing the Australian Open.
Japanese tennis player Naomi Osaka is one of the big absentees of the Australian Open, and her absence could be extended for a longer period of time. According to journalist Ben Rothenberg, Osaka is considering taking a break from tennis.
Although the 25-year-old hasn’t said publicly that she intends to retire, Rothenberg, who authored her biography to be published later this year, said she might not participate in the biggest WTA tournaments this year.
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No labels
Osaka may not have spoken plainly about the matter because she doesn’t necessarily want to put a label on it, Rothenberg told the AFP news agency.
“I don’t think she would use the word ‘retiring, ‘but if she was stepping away from the sport for a while- and it could be for any length of time- I don’t know that she would want to speak that out loud... I think she would sense that that would raise a lot of bells and whistles.”
Osaka, the star that can’t seem to take off
Since 2021, when she won the Australian Open, Osaka has failed in the Grand Slam tournaments she has participated in. At Roland Garros that same year, Naomi withdrew after being threatened with expulsion for refusing to do mandatory interviews.
After withdrawing from the event, she opened up about her struggle with anxiety and depression and has missed several other tournaments.
She was also eliminated in the third round of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, losing to Czech Markéta Vondroušová, despite being one of the favorites to win a medal.
“She knows how much work it is and how all-encompassing and preoccupying it is to be an active full-time player with the standards that she has,” said Rothenberg.