Naomi Osaka is ‘happy again’ and ‘refreshed’ after winning her opening match at the Tokyo Olympics. The Japanese tennis star spoke to the media for the first time since her boycott of press conferences at the French Open in June due to mental health struggles which resulted in her withdrawal from the event.
Osaka is playing in her first tournament since withdrawing from Roland Garros eight weeks ago and looked in impressive form as she comfortably dispatched Zheng Saisai 6-1 6-4.
The 23-year-old has opened up on her struggle with depression which she has been suffering from since winning the US Open in 2018.
And her struggles resulted in her deciding not to attend any press conferences at the French Open which resulted in a backlash from tournament organisers who threatened to expel her from the event.
The response to her decision resulted in the world No 2 deciding to pull out of the event and Wimbledon to take a break from the game in preparation for her home Olympics in Tokyo.
Speaking after her first round win, she said: “I feel definitely a little bit refreshed and happy again.
JUST IN: Olympics: Andy Murray pulls out of Tokyo 2020 men’s singles as Ash Barty suffers defeat
“I feel more than ever, they say equal, but sometimes there are times we’re a bit better – not in ability but in being able to express ourselves and things like that. I feel we’re very strong.”
Osaka is seen as the face of the games and is a strong contender to win gold in the women’s singles.
The reigning Australian Open and US Open champion lit the Olympic torch during Friday’s opening ceremony at the Japan National Stadium.
She next faces Switzerland’s Viktorija Golubic in the second round on Tuesday.
Earlier on Sunday, Osaka was given a boost as world No 1 and recently crowned Wimbledon champion, Ash Barty, crashed out in a shock loss to Spain’s Sara Sorribes Tormo.
“It was a tough day, a disappointing day. I can’t lie about that,” Barty told the Seven Network.
The Aussie 55 unforced errors in a 6-4 6-3 defeat to the world No 48.
Her Olympic hopes are still alive in the doubles though after advancing to the second round with her partner Storm Sanders on Saturday.
