Tom Brady shows support for Naomi Osaka and other athletes’ mental health

The mental health of young athletes around the world has become a hot topic. The conversation really erupted during this year’s French Open when Naomi Osaka announced she would not participate in any post-match press conferences.

In the lead-up to the Grand Slam, she cited her mental health as the reason for opting out of pressers during her campaign in Paris. After her first-round match, the world No. 3 withdrew from the tournament after her decision sparked controversy beyond the tennis world and put her in the spotlight, a place she intended not to be. During all this she picked up a $15,000 fine after claiming her opener on the terre battue.

With the discussion of mental health in the forefront and following Osaka's most recent presser at the US Open that left her in tears, Tom Brady jumped into the conversation.

“I think there are so many young people in sports. Obviously, [Osaka] is really young. [Simone Biles] is really young. I’m 44. When I was 24, I certainly didn’t have all the answers to all the different pressures and the adversities that you face,” he told ESPN. “I don’t know if we have expectations for people that we should have all the answers, have all things figured out at young ages.”

Osaka fell to Leylah Fernandez in a tough three-set battle, often looking hopeless and unhappy during the US Open third-round meeting. Following the match she expressed her unhappiness with the sport right now and is unsure of when she will take the court again.

"I’m kind of at this point where I’m trying to figure out what I want to do, and honestly I don’t know when I’m going to play my next tennis match," she said.