Sloane Stephens stands up for Naomi Osaka, says "there's no room for kicking someone when they're already down"
Former US Open champion Sloane Stephens has offered her support to Naomi Osaka after the Japanese withdrew from the 2021 French Open following the bitter fall-out from her decision to boycott press conferences at the event.
Naomi Osaka withdrew from the claycourt Grand Slam in controversial circumstances on Monday, having earlier announced that she would skip all press conferences at the tournament to safeguard her mental health.
Osaka's decision to forego her media obligations was met with hostility by the four Grand Slams, as well as many in the tennis community. In her withdrawal statement, the Japanese said she had suffered from depression since the 2018 US Open and intended to take an indefinite break from tennis.
Speaking to the media after her first-round win over Carla Suarez Navarro, Sloane Stephens said she was mortified by some of the comments she read about Naomi Osaka's situation.
"I think I have just read a lot of things that were just unkind and very insensitive. And I just feel like there's no -- there's no room for that. There's no space for negativity. There's no room for, you know, kicking someone when they're already down," Sloane Stephens said.
Stephens went on to say that Osaka should be applauded for her decision to focus on her mental health.
"We should support her and applaud her, because a lot of people wouldn't do that," Stephens said. "A lot of people play through being miserable and being upset and not being able to speak out and say those things.
"I think instead of basically traumatizing her and making fun of her situation, we should be more accepting and allow her to take the time she needs to work on herself and better herself so she can be in a better position to play tennis and be happy."
"Your energy and your peace of mind are two of the most important things in your life" - Ana Ivanovic tweets her support to Naomi Osaka
Former World No. 1 Ana Ivanovic took to Twitter to offer her support to Naomi Osaka. The Serb said Osaka should have no regrets in trying to safeguard her mental health.
"This whole situation turned out quite chaotic but your energy and your peace of mind are two of the most important things in your life and one should never be sorry for protecting them," Ana Ivanovic tweeted.
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