Why Does Playing Tennis Make So Many Pros Miserable?

Naomi Osaka is taking an indefinite break from tennis as she struggles to find meaning and joy from playing. It’s a sadly familiar script for the sport.

The moment resonated with nearly every player who has ever picked up a racket, and especially those who have reached the pinnacle of tennis. A tearful Naomi Osaka sat behind a microphone late on Friday night and spoke of how the sport she has so dominated at times has become a joyless binary journey between relief after victories and sadness following losses. There is no contentment, no happiness. Then came what may be her last public words for some time.