Naomi Osaka’s decision to withdraw from French Open has opened up discussions about mental health and athletes

MONTEREY, Calif. (KION) Naomi Osaka's decision to withdraw from the French open has led to discussion about the importance of mental health in athletes.

The owner of the Monterey Tennis Center, who says he's been playing tennis since he was the age of 6, says the sport of tennis can be emotionally taxing.

Naomi Osaka, tennis star, has decided to withdraw from the French Open, citing mental health reasons.

While some think the decision to withdraw for these reasons are trivial, others, including fellow athletes, have been supportive of the decision.

"She's won three majors.' Well, guess what? She could have mental health issues, even playing at that high level, whether you're an athlete, a basketball player or you're a high-level corporate leader, you could have issues and still be, you know, quote-unquote successful. So I think that really rang true for me," said Patrick McEnroe, former professional tennis player.

Monty Roth is a local to our central coast. He owns the Monterey Tennis Center and has been playing tennis ever since he was 6 years old, about 20 years now. He tells KION that this isn't the first time a tennis player has brought up these issues

"Six years ago, I believe Mardy Fish talked about it. He left the tour after being in the top ten for about 2 years and no one else wanted to talk about it and people didn't think it was right for Mardy Fish to talk about it. They thought it was an excuse. And so, I do think with her talking about it, it's another player, another big athlete talking about it and it shows it's not an excuse and it's a tough thing to do," said Roth.

Pam Shriver, another former tennis star, offers her support and condemns tennis official's attempts to reprimand her.

“She alluded to the fact that she was trying to take care of her mental health, and I think that was the cue that tennis establishment needed to really take seriously. The fact that she maybe could be defaulted if she continued to break the rule. I just thought that made matters much, much worse,” said Shriver.

Players can be fined for not participating in press conferences, as it is listed as one of their duties. This includes Osaka, who was penalized for skipping a press conference before she left the tournament.