Source: Tim Clayton – Corbis / Getty
After withdrawing from the French Open last week, reports now share that tennis champion Naomi Osaka has also dropped out of the German Open.
Also known as the Berlin WTA 5000 grass-court tournament, event organizers told Reuters regarding her status in the tournament — which begins on July 14, “We have received notification Naomi Osaka cannot start in Berlin. After consulting her management, she will take a break.”
The news source went on to report, “Osaka has not revealed when she plans to play next, casting doubt on her participation at the Wimbledon Grand Slam, which starts on June 28, and the Tokyo Olympics next month.”
If you haven’t been keeping up, Osaka originally made headlines in recent weeks when she announced that she’d chosen to forgo doing press while playing at the French Open. According to her, it was a precaution she’d decided upon in order to put her mental health first. Within a long statement she’d shared explaining further, she noted that not enough was being done to prioritize the mental wellbeing of competitive athletes.
After being fined $15,000 by Roland-Garros for not sitting in for the required press conferences, Osaka ultimately decided to withdraw from the competition altogether.
While many applauded her and found her decision to be inspiring, Osaka’s choices didn’t go without their share of criticisms.
According to Yahoo Sports!, “The Grand Slam tournaments collectively said in a statement they would work to improve the player experienced and offered ‘support and assistance’ to Osaka.”
At 23-years old, she stands as a four-time Grand Slam champion and the world’s highest-paid female athlete. Her sponsorships and endorsements come from a variety of big brands including Nike, Nissan, Sweetgreen, Mastercard, and Louis Vuitton. Recently, she even announced that she was coming out with a skincare line and partnering with Frankies Bikinis for a swimwear collection.
