The Japanese tennis player Naomi Osaka was eliminated on Saturday in the second round of Indian Wells against the Russian Veronika Kudermetova in a game where he broke down in tears during and after the game after being insulted from the stands.
“Naomi, you suck”, was heard from the public of the center court of Indian Wells (California) when only four minutes of the game had been played and he was losing by three games to nil.
Osaka, who has had to take breaks in her career due to her anxiety and depression problemsapproached the judge to protest and, in one of the breaks, she broke down in tears in her chair.
WTA Supervisor Clare Wood came over to speak to the player, who returned to the track totally unconcentrated and finished the set 6-0 against.
ANDhe crowd on center court in Indian Wells (California) tried to cheer up the Japanese with shouts of support after each point.
After talking to the officer again, Osaka returned for the second manga, in which she offered battle until Kudermetova broke her serve in the seventh game, putting her 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 game for me because she is a great player and a great fighter”, recognized Kudermetova to his rival.
Later, Osaka also asked for the floor to congratulate the Russian player and thank the public for their support, but also to explain why he got mentally blocked during the game.
“To be honest, I feel like I’ve been booed before here and it hasn’t bothered me.”, he remembered. “But I have seen a video of Venus and Serena (Williams) being booed here. If you’ve never seen it, you should.”
“I don’t know why, but it got into my head and repeated itself a lot,” said the tennis player, who could barely speak.
In 2001when Serena Williams won the final of Indian Wells against Kim Clijsters, his sister Venus and his father Richard were booed when they sat in the stands.
Video of the incident from Indian Wells yesterday, as someone in the crowd shouted “Naomi, You Suck” towards Naomi Osakapic.twitter.com/pipYe3dse5
— PointsBet Sportsbook (@PointsBetUSA) March 13, 2022
The bullying continued after Serena won and went courtside to hug Venus and Richard Williams, who she said was subjected to racial slurs.
For 14 years the two champions refused to return to play in this tournament.
Osaka is trying to get back to her best after a 2021 season in which she revealed she has suffered bouts of anxiety and depression during her career.
Following her elimination from last year’s US Open, Osaka took some time off the circuit until the start of this season. (D)
Source: Eluniverso
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