Miami Open: Naomi Osaka admits she’s talking to a therapist

Naomi Osaka has revealed she started talking to a therapist following her exit from Indian Wells earlier this month. 

The Japanese star was heckled by a member of the crowd during her third-round match in California, who shouted “Naomi, you suck” at the former world number one.

The incident visibly affected Osaka, who was seen talking to the chair umpire at various points throughout the match. 

Following the contest, the 24-year-old addressed the crowd and admitted the heckling impacted her because of what happened to the Williams sisters at Indian Wells in the past. 

In 2001, both Serena and Venus were booed in the final, after some believed Venus had deliberately forfeited the semi-final between the two. 

“To be honest, I’ve gotten heckled before, like it didn’t really bother me,” Osaka admitted. “But heckled here [Indian Wells], I’ve watched a video of Venus and Serena get heckled here and if you’ve never watched it, you should watch it.

“And I don’t know why but it went into my head and it got replayed a lot. I’m trying not to cry. But I just wanted to say thank you and congratulations [to Kudermetova]. Yeah, just thank you.”

"This is like my home tournament. This is the tournament I loved coming to once a year."