Osaka felt ungrateful for her attitude to tennis

Published at 06:59 pm August 19th, 2021

Naomi Osaka

Osaka said the restrictions imposed due to the Covid-19 pandemic had made things really stressful for her but recent events in Haiti and Afghanistan led to a change in her outlook

Naomi Osaka said she had felt "ungrateful" at times over the last year for not fully appreciating her life as one of the world's top tennis players.

The world No 2 sealed a comeback victory over Coco Gauff at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati Wednesday, her first event outside the Olympics since withdrawing from the French Open in May.

She pulled out of Roland Garros after being punished for refusing to do media conferences, saying her mental health was adversely impacted by certain lines of questioning.

Osaka shed tears and briefly left a press conference in Cincinnati Monday when asked about her relationship with the media and returned to the theme Wednesday.

The four-time Grand Slam champion said the restrictions imposed due to the Covid-19 pandemic had made things "really stressful" for her but recent events in Haiti and Afghanistan led to a change in her outlook.

A 7.2-magnitude earthquake has killed more than 2,000 people in Haiti - the country where her father was born - while Afghanistan has been in turmoil.