Naomi Osaka Quits French Open Following Her Decision to Boycott Media Interviews

Four-time Grand Slam singles champion and World No 2 Naomi Osaka has announced that she is withdrawing from the French Open.

The 23-year-old Japanese tennis star took to Twitter to explain her decision.  

Tennis fans have been showing support for Osaka and slamming the four Grand Slam tournaments' governing body for taking punitive measures against the player. 

Thank you to the governing bodies and the media who criticised her and punished her. Now we are without one of the best players on Tour in a Grand Slam. Unbelievable.

— Himansh (@HimanshSingla_) May 31, 2021

I'm sorry that the French Open are such snobbutts you had to withdraw. I think you're right and I think media interacting with athlete reform is needed. I hope that things start looking up

— Tango (@tangozlulu) May 31, 2021

Let’s boycott the French open. Naomi is the most exciting player anyway. Imagine punishing someone for having anxiety... in 2021.

— Jameela Jamil 🌈 (@jameelajamil) May 31, 2021

​Last week, Osaka announced that she would not participate in mandatory media interviews, citing mental health reasons.​ On Sunday, she was fined $15,000 for skipping a press conference after the first round of the French Open and warned that she could be disqualified from the tournament if she continued boycotting press conferences.