Image source: Getty/Monica Schipper
the US Open It’s only a few days away, which means some of the best tennis pros are in New York preparing for the tournament. POPSUGAR was able to catch up with some of them, including Naomi Osaka, Serena WilliamsVenusWilliams, Nick Kyrgiosand Rafael Nadal, in “A Conversation With Champions” organized by the Lotte New York Palace.
Moderated by “Today” hosts Sheinelle Jones and Dylan Dreyer, the pros shared their feelings about this year’s competition and talked about some of their personal struggles as top-tier tennis players.
But the most vulnerable moment of the night came from Kyrgios talking about his mental health journey and how he changed when he met and worked with Osaka.
“I really struggled early with mental health, and, you know, there was a time in my tennis career where I was really struggling and I wasn’t sure if it was okay to feel that way,” Kyrgios said during the event. He then met Osaka and started getting to know her. “We did a podcast together, and she opened up. And then when she was going through all that at the french open one year . . . that opened my eyes as if to say: ‘Wow, there is another tennis player as good as a champion that she was also going through [it].'”
“That made me feel more comfortable to talk about it,” Kyrgios said. Eventually, the Australian player was encouraged to share his own experience with self-harm and depression in a instagram post in February. In the caption, Kyrgios wrote: “This was me 3 years ago at the Australian Open. Most would assume I was doing well mentally or enjoying my life…it was one of my darkest periods. If you look from close by, on my right arm, you can see my self-harm. He went on to detail his experience with suicidal thoughts, alcohol and drug abuse, and depression. He also encouraged fans to contact him if they had any issues. “I want you to be able to reach your full potential and smile. This life is beautiful,” he closed the caption.
Kyrgios told the audience on “A Conversation With Champions” that he receives messages related to that post and about his own mental health journeys from his followers every day and “I try to respond to as many people as I can.”
“Especially, I think guys my age really struggle to open up,” she continued, crediting fears of feeling weak. “But [Osaka] He helped me a lot with that.”
Osaka admits that it’s “really crazy” to think that she could play this kind of role in someone’s life. But she wants to remind people who are experiencing mental health issues that they’re not the only ones. “As a person, we all think that we are alone in the world, or we all have main character syndrome”, he told the audience. But the truth is that our lives are not so unique and “we all share a similar feeling”.
The four-time Grand Slam champion says it was “really hard” for her to be honest about her mental health, “but seeing how it helped people made it worth it.” You can watch both Kyrgios and Osaka play at this year’s US Open starting on August 29 in the men’s and women’s singles categories, respectively.
If you or someone you know is dealing with a mental health issue, such as depression or anxiety, the National Alliance on Mental Illness has resources available, including a helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6424). You also can dial 988the nation’s new mental health crisis hotline.
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