Naomi Osaka’s bad moment: she cried during a match because of the screams of a fan and was eliminated from Indian Wells

The Japanese tennis player Naomi Osaka was eliminated this Saturday in the second round of Indian Wells against the Russian Veronika Kudermetova in a match where she broke down in tears during and after the game after being insulted from the stands.

“Naomi, you suck”, was heard from the crowd on Center Court in Indian Wells when only four minutes into the match and he was down 3-0 in the first set. So, the Japanese, who has had to take breaks in her career due to her anxiety and depression problems, approached to ask the judge to take action. In one of the breaks her emotions boiled over and she broke down in tears in her chair.

WTA Supervisor Clare Wood approached to speak with the player, who returned to the court completely unfocused and finished the set 6-0 against. The crowd on center court in Indian Wells tried to cheer the former world number one on with cheers after each point. After talking to the officer again, Osaka He returned for the second set, in which he offered battle until the Russian broke his serve in the seventh game, putting his victory on track.

As usual in the tournament, the winner of the game addressed a few words to the fans. “I want to say that it was a very tough match for me because she is a great player and a great fighter,” he acknowledged. Kudermetova to his rival.

Then Osaka He also asked for the floor to congratulate his rival but also to explain why he mentally blocked himself during the game: ”To be honest, I’ve been interrupted before, it really didn’t bother me. But I was interrupted here, as I’ve seen in a video of Venus and Serena (Williams) who were interrupted here, and if you’ve never seen it, you should watch it. I don’t know why, but that popped into my head and I played it a lot. I’m trying not to cry, but… I just want to say thank you and congratulations. Simply thanks.

Serena and Venus Williamsgreat stars of American women’s tennis, refused to play in Indian Wells for 14 years due to incidents that occurred in the 2001 edition. The eldest of the sisters withdrew from the semifinal match against her sister due to a knee injury. The next day, Serena faced Kim Clijsters in the finale, and when Venus and her father, Richard, took their seats, they were booed by part of the audience. The bullying continued after Serena won and went courtside to hug Venus and Richard Williams, who said he was subjected to racial slurs.

Osakawinner of four tournaments of Grand Slam, is one of the most high-profile figures who have brought to the fore mental health problems among elite athletes. Last year, upon retiring during Roland Garros, the Japanese revealed that she had suffered several episodes of depression and anxiety during her career. She subsequently resigned from competing in Wimbledon in the midst of a controversy over his refusal to participate in press conferences, which cost him a fine at Roland Garros.

Then he prematurely bid farewell to the tokyo gamesin which she was chosen to light the Olympic cauldron, and the US Openwhen he took a break from tennis until the start of this season. Osaka has fallen to the position rank 78 from WTA and in Indian Wells He competed by invitation.

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With information from AFP