On the same day of Rafael Nadal’s announcement, Naomi Osaka has become the latest big name to withdraw from the Wimbledon Championships.
The four-time Grand Slam champion has decided to miss the Grand Slam so she can take some ‘personal time’ away from the Tour, according to a statement issued by her team. Osaka recently revealed that she has been suffering from depression and social anxiety since 2018. The revelation came after a fallout erupted over her decision to not fulfil her press commitments at the French Open. She later withdrew from the tournament following her first round match due to mental health concerns.
However, Osaka has confirmed that she still intends to play at the Tokyo Olympic Games which will start towards the end of next month. She has been one the key athletes used by organisers to help promote the upcoming games.
“Naomi won’t be playing Wimbledon this year. She is taking some personal time with friends and family. She will be ready for the Olympics and is excited to play in front of her home fans.” A statement reads.
Despite her success in the majors, the 23-year-old is yet to go deep in the draw at Wimbledon. In her three previous appearances, she has reached the third round twice followed by a shock first round loss to Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan in 2019. The tournament wasn’t held last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Earlier this week Wimbledon organisers were hopeful that the world No.2 would play after reaching out to her team. Although they had no direct contact with Osaka herself. Tournament director Jamie Baker said he was open to ‘any discussions’ regarding potential issues that could arise.
“I had the conversation with her team,” AFP quoted Baker as saying on Wednesday. “It’s absolutely clear that we’re here, we’re completely open for any discussions when they want to have that. Hopefully it goes without saying that we want the best players competing here no matter what.”
Sportico reports that Osaka made $55M in earnings and endorsements during a 12-month period between 2020-2021. The highest amount ever to be earned by a female athlete during that period.
Osaka is yet to make any public commented following her withdrawal from Wimbledon.
