Tennis star Naomi Osaka is speaking out after she lost in the second round of the 2024 U.S. Open.
On Thursday, Aug. 29, Osaka was eliminated from this year's tournament after a 6-3, 7-6 (5) loss against Czech Republic's Karolína Muchová in the second round.
“It’s a little rough, because I do take these losses really personally. It’s like a dramatic word, but I feel like my heart dies every time I lose,” Osaka said following the loss, as reported by the Associated Press. "It sucks a lot, but I've been trying to be more mature and learn and talk more about them."
Osaka—who won the US Open in 2018 and 2020, along with the Australian Open in 2019 and 2021—had returned to the iconic Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Queens, New York after a nearly two-year break from the sport to prioritize her mental health and start a family.
In January 2023, she announced she was pregnant and would not be competing that year. In July of the same year, she gave birth to her daughter, People reported at the time.
After the match, Osaka detailed where things for her went wrong in the second round.
“During the pressure moments, I got nervous, and I don’t know if I just have to keep playing more matches and get used to that feeling, especially on a really big stage,” Osaka said, according to the Associated Press.
“Honestly, if I get past the disappointment, I feel pretty proud of myself to have gotten that many opportunities while still feeling like I could have played much better," she added.
In 2021, in an essay for TIME, Osaka wrote about what she had learned during her career and from her decision to step back from the tennis court to prioritize other important aspects of her life.
"Lesson one: you can never please everyone," she wrote at the time. "So, when I said I needed to miss French Open press conferences to take care of myself mentally, I should have been prepared for what unfolded."
The athlete went on to say that "perhaps we should give athletes the right to take a mental break from media scrutiny on a rare occasion without being subject to strict sanctions."
"Believe it or not, I am naturally introverted and do not court the spotlight. I always try to push myself to speak up for what I believe to be right, but that often comes at a cost of great anxiety," she continued.
"I feel uncomfortable being the spokesperson or face of athlete mental health as it’s still so new to me and I don’t have all the answers," she added. "I do hope that people can relate and understand it’s O.K. to not be O.K., and it’s O.K. to talk about it. There are people who can help, and there is usually light at the end of any tunnel."
