Osaka, who also revealed she had been suffering from depression since 2018, went on to withdraw from the upcoming Wimbledon as well.
In a recent interview, former World No. 1 and three-time Grand Slam champion Andy Murray voiced his support for Naomi Osaka. The Brit claimed that in his early years he was similarly unprepared to deal with the pressure of being a top athlete in the spotlight.
Murray claimed he found it very hard to go from a relative unknown to the center of attention in the tennis world, and admitted he struggled to “deal with the press side of things”.
How Naomi Osaka’s decision could impact her ranking
Naomi Osaka recently announced her withdrawal from the grasscourt Major, but revealed she plans on representing Japan at the Olympics later this year.
The World No. 2’s decision could have a major impact on her ranking. Naomi Osaka lost in the first round at Wimbledon in 2019, so she could have gained plenty of points by participating this year.
Moreover, her decision to play in the Olympics could result in her potentially missing WTA 1000 events in Montreal and Cincinnati in August. The Rogers Cup is set to begin on 9 August, a day after the Olympics ends, with the Western & Southern Open scheduled a week later.
If Osaka makes a deep run at the Olympics, she could pull out of the aforementioned WTA 1000 events. That would result in the Japanese dropping all the points from her quarterfinal finish at the Rogers Cup in 2019, and her runners-up finish at the Western and Southern Open last year.
Osaka will also be defending 2000 ranking points at the US Open, having won the title in New York last year.
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