"Players in their weak moments should be allowed to avoid media"- Mohammad Kaif
Former India batsman Mohammad Kaif has come out in support of Japanese tennis star Naomi Osaka. He said players across all sports should be allowed to skip media duties during their weak moments if it helps with their mental health.
Naomi Osaka received huge backlash from tournament officials after she decided to boycott press conferences during the ongoing French Open. Osaka has now pulled out of the Grand Slam to look after her mental health.
Mohammad Kaif tweeted that it is high time that everyone acknowledges mental health issues in sport, especially in individual sports like tennis.
"It's high time we acknowledge the issue of mental health in sports. More so in individual sports. In cricket, a coach or a senior player can be a back up option for a captain but not in tennis. Let's be sensitive, players in their weak moments should be allowed to avoid media," Mohammad Kaif tweeted.
Mohammad Kaif was recently seen in action at the Road Safety World Series 2021, where he played for the India Legends. Kaif is also an assistant coach with the IPL franchise Delhi Capitals.
Virat Kohli opened up on his bout with depression earlier this year
Indian skipper Virat Kohli acknowledged he suffered from depression and felt like the 'loneliest guy' in the world during his disastrous tour of England in 2014. In a chat with Mark Nicholas on his podcast 'Not Just Cricket' in February, Kohli said:
"Yes, I did (On being asked whether he suffered from depression during the England tour in 2014.) It's not a great feeling to wake up knowing that you won't be able to score runs and I think all batsmen have felt that at some stage that you are not in control of anything at all, You just don't understand how to get over it. That was a phase when I literally couldn't do anything to overturn things...I felt like I was the loneliest guy in the world."
Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell is another player who suffered from mental health issues and took a sabbatical from cricket in 2019.