Osaka ‘filtering the negativity’ ahead of Madrid Open after heckler incident

04/29/2022

Four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka insists "she is filtering the negativity" as she prepares to play the Madrid Open.

Osaka, 24, is still reeling from the controversial events of the Indian Wells Masters, where she was reduced to tears after being heckled during her second-round defeat to Veronika Kudermetova. Osaka was beaten 6-0 6-4, after a spectator shouted 'Naomi, you suck' during the opening game.

She did respond by reaching the final of the Miami Open, where she was beaten by world No 1 Iga Swiatek. Prior to that, the Japanese star was reduced to tears as she secured an emotional win over Belinda Bencic.

And ahead of the clay-court event in Spain, Osaka admitted she was still dealing with what transpired in California. The current world No 36 also admitted to doctoring her use of social media in a bid to avoid negative comments.

"I'm not going to lie, it's not like everyday is being perfect," Osaka told reporters, via the Daily Mail : "I talk to my therapist at least once a week and I just try to be more open to things.

"Say something happens that kind of throws me off my groove, I try to see it from a different perspective. I was talking to my therapist about that, being more open to all the possibilities."

"I would say that filtering the negativity from a minority is something that I'm getting better doing. I'm doing mental exercises to focus on the positive," she added. Osaka has also come off Twitter because"'it is way more negative than Instagram."

At the 2021 French Open, Osaka was fined $15,000 after refusing to fulfil her mandatory media duties. Organisers threatened her with further sanctions, before she duly withdrew from the event, citing mental health issues.

As a result she missed Wimbledon that summer, but did then return in both the Tokyo Olympics and US Open. However, after being beaten in an ill-tempered third-round match by Leylah Fernandez in Flushing Meadows, she announced another hiatus from the sport, saying that winning "didn't make her happy anymore."

However, she insisted that her past experiences have helped her deal with adversity now: "There are a lot of moments in my career that are extremely sad for me at that time but I can later come back, look at it and think that I really grew as a person after that," she continued.

"Even though I really hated the experience, I'm glad it happened to me. Indian Wells was one of those moments. I wish it didn't happen but I'm glad it did."

Osaka will play Anastasia Potapova first up in Madrid. The Russian, 21, had to qualify for the tournament.

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