‘Mental Health Is..’- Rivals Amanda Anisimova and Naomi Osaka’s Sensitive Past Decisions Backed by Empathetic Paula Badosa

Mind over Medals. Paula Badosa was arguably the first top-flight tennis player to speak about her struggles with anxiety and depression in the summer of 2019. However, it was Naomi Osaka who put athlete-mental health conversation on the global stage in 2021. She emphasized the importance of discussion on mental health in an athlete’s life. Osaka had even taken a significant break from tennis in the past citing her mental health issue.

Mental health awareness has now become vital to global sports. Players are now encouraged to take mental health breaks. Recently Paula Badosa was seen backing the decisions of her rivals Naomi Osaka and Amanda Anisimova on mental health awareness.

Paula Badosa believes ‘Tennis, it’s very tough mentally’

Badosa had earlier revealed how the burden of expectations had put unnecessary pressure on her in the past. She had to face an uphill battle with mental health issues and as a result, her life & career both felt the impact. The 26YO Spaniard had also spoken about the importance of speaking up on these issues. Recently she was asked about the recent trend of players stepping away from the tour citing mental health problems, just like she and Naomi Osaka did in the past. Here’s what she said in reply.

“I think it’s something totally normal. As I always say, I respect that a lot. Mental health is the first thing. It’s a priority here. Tennis, it’s very tough mentally. It’s very stressful. I totally understand it. For sure now she’s feeling much better. She had some time off. Yeah, I don’t know the other cases of the other players. But if they feel of stopping, I always support that,” Paula Badosa.

READ MORE: Paula Badosa Showers Love on Stefanos Tsitsipas in a Heartwarming Moment After the Greek Star’s Hard-Fought Victory

Paula Badosa is currently in Australia, she got off to a winning start in the Australian Open. The Spaniard won her first two matches at the tournament. But got knocked out of the event earlier today at the hands of Amanda Anisimova.

Amanda Anisimova making her comeback in style at the ‘Land Down Under’

After an 8-month-long absence from competitive action. The 22-year-old American is now 3 out of 3 in the Australian Open. Amanda Anisimiova defeated Paula Badosa by 7-5,6-4 in a 1 hour 28 minutes clash at the John Cain Arena on Friday. She’ll now face Aryna Sabalenka in the next round on Sunday. But why did she take such a long break?

Before the break, she had said, “At this point, my priority is my mental well-being and taking a break for some time. I’ve worked as hard as I could to push through it.” Anisimova made a comeback this year. and after her first match at the Australian Open here’s what she said on her comeback. “I’m just happy with how I feel coming back. I feel like I was very burned out while I was playing, and that really wasn’t a nice feeling. Being able to just reset is really nice,” Amanda Anisimova.

Naomi Osaka and Paula Badosa have played a crucial role in making sure mental health remains one of the topmost priorities in an athlete’s life. Others are now following in their footsteps. 

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