“Naomi Osaka made the mistake of not telling the authorities about her illness” says Toni Nadal


“Naomi Osaka made the mistake of not telling the authorities about her illness” says Toni Nadal

Toni Nadal and Naomi Osaka

Naomi Osaka has become one of the most debatable topic in the sporting world for the past week after some shocking turn of events took place at the ongoing French Open 2021.

Osaka had given out a statement refusing to attend the press conferences to keep a positive approach at the Grand Slam which was met with heavy criticism and backlash from the media and many fans. She was charged with a $15,000 fine by the tournament after she skipped her press conference after winning the first round at the Roland Garros.

With many expecting the drama to continue, Naomi put out another statement on the 31st May declaring her withdrawal from the tournament as she is battling depression since her 2018 US Open victory and decided to end the ongoing episode in Paris and look after mental well being taking some time off from the tournament.

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“I will not be the one to question the sufferings of the current number two in the WTA” comments Toni Nadal

Toni Nadal
Toni Nadal

Toni Nadal recently gave his opinions about the entire saga while writing for a special column in the Spanish newspaper ‘El Pais’. Toni recently became the coach of Canadian youngster Felix Auger-Aliassime after having coached Rafael Nadal from 1990 to 2017. Writing about the Osaka incident, Toni did not question her intent to grab extra attention and hoped for her speedy recovery.

I will not be the one to question the sufferings of the current number two in the WTA, much less the one to remove an iota of importance from any health problem. Hopefully she will soon overcome her insecurities and will be able to compete again and delight the fans who must regret her dismissal so much,” wrote Toni.

He was however surprised about Naomi not informing the organisers about her illness. “It seems unprecedented to me that, if she was affected by such illness, she did not inform the tournament organization as soon as she signed her arrival, through a medical report,” 

I am sure that he would have found the necessary understanding and probably also a solution to alleviate his particular emotional problem in a timely manner.” added Toni about how the situation with keeping her health in mind could have been dealt better.

Toni Nadal compares the situation of Naomi Osaka and Guillermo Coria

Naomi Osaka and Guillermo Coria
Naomi Osaka and Guillermo Coria

The rise and decline of former World No. 3 from Argentina Guillermo Coria is one of the saddest stories of tennis as Coria was believed to be one of the best player on the tour, especially on Clay, but his injuries leading to lack of confidence and reported mental health problems saw him retire early at the age of 27.

I remember the anguishing stress that affected Guillermo Coria who, after chaining three years in a row within the top-10 and earning the nickname of El Mago for his ability on the court, stopped finding a way to get the serve, even committing 35 double faults in the same match,” wrote Toni about Coria’s struggles.

The magnificent player entered a loop of inconsistency from which he could not get out and which, surely, led to his early retirement at the age of 27,” added Toni explaining how the players are put under extreme pressure and can be crushed due to the constant expectations from the fans and their self.

Obviously, I am not an expert in psychology, but my experience after so many years as a coach in the professional circuit leads me to better understand the anxiety of the Argentine than that of the Japanese. It is at least surprising that the anguish accrues him to journalists , to a greater extent than to his opponents.

“No elite athlete should demand special treatment” believes Toni Nadal about Osaka wanting to skip media interaction

Naomi Osaka
Naomi Osaka

Toni Nadal however mentioned that Naomi Osaka’s initial tweet about not interacting with the media sounded a bit rude and unpleasant and in no way showed that she is suffering from a serious mental issue.

We must not forget, on the other hand, that the player’s first tweet, the one that sparked the controversy at the beginning of the week, distilled a more plaintive and impatient tone than anything. In it, she accused journalists of insensitivity and blamed them for the emotional collapse of some players after losing a match. She also reiterated that she did not mind paying the fines for evading her contractual obligation.

Her posture gave a certainly challenging impression to come from a person suffering from such disturbing emotional problems. I think that those first manifestations are the ones that confuse and sow doubts about the real reasons for their actions. And the ones that undoubtedly lead the organizers to try to abort their inconsiderate behavior,”

No elite athlete should demand special treatment or underestimate the efforts of all those involved in organizing a tournament of this caliber. Not understanding that they are sustained not only by their masterful performances, but also because there is a great promotional industry and an enormous work of dissemination by journalists, is a miscalculation.” concluded Toni in his article.

While many players and personnel’s involved in tennis have voiced their opinions about the incident, it surely has brought attention to the dealings athletes have to go through from.

Also Read: “What journalist will dare criticize Naomi ever again?” Serena Williams, Navratilova, Stephen Curry and others react to Naomi Osaka’s withdrawal from the French Open