Diego Schwartzman has become the latest top player to open up about their mental health by revealing that he is working with a psychologist.
The Argentine No.1 said he has been suffering from anxiety attacks throughout the 2022 season which he believes is linked to the pressure he faces on the Tour. Schwartzman is currently ranked 18th in the world which is 10 places below his ranking high which was achieved two years ago. This season he has achieved a win-loss record of 31-23 but is yet to win a Tour title. Although he was runner-up at both the Argentina Open and Rio Open in February.
“This year I had quite a few anxiety attacks. Tennis is a bit like that. The best thing is to aim for the short term and set goals Tour after Tour (after each season). If they told me at 17 that I was going to do what I have done, I would have signed, but when you enter in the vortex it is a rhythm that is difficult to stop,’ El Espanol quoted Schwartman as saying during an interview with radio station Urbana Play.
Schwartzman believes the root of his mental struggles started shortly after he achieved his best-ever result at a Grand Slam. At the 2020 French Open, he reached the semi-finals before losing to the formidable Rafael Nadal. He has also reached the quarter-final stage of a major tournament on four other occasions.
After producing his breakthrough run at Roland Garros, the 30-year-old admits that he found it difficult to deal with the expectations placed on him as he doubted the quality of his performances.
“You reach the semi-finals at Roland Garros, but then you reach the quarter-finals at an ATP 500 and you wonder if it’s good or bad. This year I started 14th in the world. Today, I’m 18th and I say to myself: ‘What a shitty year.’ Then I think and it is not like that. One enters into that of listening to the other, both in the positive and in the criticism. When the bad comes, one loses the analysis of what is happening,” he explains.
Schwartzman goes on to explain why he believes now is the right time to begin working with a therapist to help him deal with issues both on and off the court.
“This year I started therapy for everything that happens to me. Not only on the court but in life, for fears, anxieties and things that are normal. For the first time I started that process because I felt that I needed a little outside help to have other tools to solve”, he said.
It is not the first time a player have spoken openly about their mental health. Naomi Osaka has previously taken time away from the Tour due to reasons related to depression and social anxiety. Australian tennis stars Thanasi Kokkinakis and Nick Kyrgios have also both spoken about their struggles. Earlier this year, former world No.1 Chris Evert publicly called for more to be done concerning the management of mental health among players on the ATP Tour.
Schwartzman will return to action next week in the European Open where he will be seeded third in the draw.
Urbana Play’s full interview with Schwartman (which is in Spanish) can be viewed here.
