Naomi Osaka In Tears As She Loses On Her Debut As World Number One
Naomi Osaka has crashed out of the Dubai Championships on her debut as the world number one.
The Australian Open champion was in tears after her shock defeat to World No. 67 Kristina Mladenovic in the first round of the championship.
Osaka still could not overcome the storm that has surrounded her in recent weeks following her shock split from coach Sascha Bajin, who guided her to the top of the WTA Rankings.
The Japenese lost 6-3 6-3 in just over an hour and could not find her rhythm.
Osaka wasn’t able to manage her emotions during her press conference, and at one point she was asked if she needed to leave the room to compose herself.
“I don’t think I necessarily understand what position I’m in a way,” Osaka said of her struggle to come to terms with the fact that she is one of the highest profile stars in tennis right now.
“And because last year I wasn’t even anywhere close to this ranking and people didn’t pay attention to me and that’s something that I’m comfortable with.”
It was at this point that Osaka briefly broke down and had to hide her face as she wiped away tears.
“I don’t know why I’m crying,” she added.
“I don’t know why this is happening.
“I don’t really like the attention, so yeah, it’s been a little tough.”
A tearful Naomi Osaka reflects on life in the limelight after her shocking opening round loss to Kiki Mladenovic. pic.twitter.com/LwnlwhuUDD
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) February 19, 2019
Concise News gathered that the world number one admitted that her loss was a consequence of the ongoing intrigue surrounding her split from her coach.
“I’m pretty sure as time goes on you guys will stop talking about it. For now, it’s like the biggest tennis news, I guess,” she said.
“See, it’s a little bit hard because I feel like people are staring at me, and not in a good way.”
