Osaka was in the spotlight in May, when he withdrew from the tournament after refusing to speak to the media during the event, citing mental health reasons for his decision. He was fined $ 15,000 for not participating in media work at Roland Garros, in the hope that the fines he incurred would go to a mental health charity.
“Honestly, I feel like there were a lot of things I did wrong at the time, but I’m also the kind of person that is a lot at the moment,” Osaka told the New York press on Friday, in front of the U.S. Open. United States.
“Like everything I feel, I will say or do it. I don’t necessarily think this is bad. I think there are a lot of things I’ve learned to do better. Of course, I don’t feel the same way the situation will happen again,” he said. .
“I would say maybe I would think a little more about the way I, for example, didn’t know how far an agreement would be,” Osaka added.
His decision to retire from Roland Garros and move away from competitive tennis sparked a debate about the relationship athletes have with the media and whether or not press conferences work to the detriment of their mental health.
Osaka said the format of the press conference “is not up to date” and “needs an update” in a post he wrote for a July issue of TIME magazine.
“I love the press; I don’t love all press conferences,” Osaka wrote. “However, in my opinion (and I mean this is just my opinion and not that of all the tennis players on tour), the format of the press conference is … it needs an update.”
“I think we can improve it […] Less subject vs. object; more on an equal footing, ”he added.
The world number 3 also drew attention earlier this month when he took a short break during a pre-tournament press conference at the Open Western and Southern after starting to cry. After being eliminated from the tournament by Jil Teichmann, Osaka reflected that making the decision to go out and play “is a success”.
Earlier this month, Osaka said it was more grateful for its tennis career, after seeing the dire situations in Haiti and Afghanistan.
The two-time US Open champion will try to regain her title this year at Flushing Meadows, which begins on Monday, August 30th.
