Staff Reporter.
Naomi Osaka has pulled out of next week’s Berlin WTA 500 grass-court event following her French Open withdrawal.
The world number two and four-time Grand Slam winner, 23, dropped out of Roland Garros on mental health grounds.
“We have received notification Naomi Osaka cannot start in Berlin. After consulting her management, she will take a break,” said a spokesman for the Berlin event, which starts on 14 June.
The withdrawal casts doubt on Osaka’s participation at Wimbledon.
She pulled out of the French Open last Monday, citing a need to protect her mental health after a dispute over her refusal to attend post-match media conferences at the tournament.
Osaka put out a brief social media statement on Saturday, using Instagram to thank her fans for their support, but is yet to confirm when she will return to the court.
Wimbledon, the third Grand Slam of the year, starts on 28 June.
Meanwhile former finalist Sloane Stephens was thrashed by Barbora Krejcikova in the fourth round of the French Open.
World number 33 Krejcikova, who beat Elina Svitolina in the third round, is now on a nine-match unbeaten streak.
She will play either American teenager Coco Gauff or Ons Jabeur of Tunisia in the quarter-finals.
Krejcikova, a three-time Grand Slam doubles champion, made her singles breakthrough at last year’s French Open when she reached the fourth round.
She won the Strasbourg Open in the lead up to this tournament and was dominant against world number 59 Stephens, saving all three break points she faced.
A disappointed Stephens, who had impressed in the previous rounds, struggled for rhythm, finishing with 26 unforced errors to just nine winners.