Rory McIlroy Discusses Naomi Osaka’s Decision to Take a Break from Tennis

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Rory McIlroy empathized with Naomi Osaka after the 23-year-old indicated she may take a break from tennis.

“I spoke about this in 2019 about separating who I am as a golfer and who I am as a person and trying to not let that define me, and it seems what Naomi is going through at the minute is that same thing,” the 32-year-old told reporters Sunday after the Tour Championship.

The four-time major champion added that “everyone just needs to let her have time to figure that out.”

In May, Osaka withdrew from the French Open after initially saying she was opting out of press availability for the betterment of her mental health. She missed Wimbledon as well to focus on the 2021 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

Osaka saw her run in the U.S. Open end earlier than expected following a third-round loss to Leylah Fernandez. She explained after the match how a victory brought a sense of “relief” rather than excitement or happiness. She also come to feel “very sad” after a defeat.

As he indicated, McIlroy has experienced similar issues after tasting major success early in his career. Ahead of the 2019 Masters, the Northern Irishman said he was discovering how better to balance golf with his mental health.

“It’s focusing on the small things and not living or dying by the results,” he said. “… A change of attitude has been one of the biggest keys to how I’ve played for the first few months of the year.”