Japanese World No. 2 Naomi Osaka ruffled many feathers with her withdrawal from the French Open 2021 and for prioritizing her mental health. Consequently, it has divided the world into two parts – one that justified the system, and the other side that sympathized with the player. Now, the Hollywood star Anthony Mackie has become the latest one to side with Osaka.

For the 2021 year, actor Anthony Mackie, also known as the new Captain America, hosted the Excellence in Sports Performance Yearly (ESPY) Awards. Moreover, during its opening monologue, he reflected upon the Osaka situation.

The Japanese first decided to boycott the regulatory media duties at Roland-Garros. In return, she faced a lot of heat, which led to her opting-out from the tournament a day before her second-round match.

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Anthony Mackie comes in support of Naomi Osaka on the French Open withdrawal row

To begin the show, Mackie started with jokes about the controversies that happened in the sports world. Naturally, he did not miss out on the dispute around the four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka. In fact, he tagged the whole situation as “crazy.”

“I don’t know how you punish Naomi Osaka for prioritizing her mental health. That’s crazy,” Mackie said. 

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Furthermore, he used his on-screen superhero character as a punchline to relay the shortcomings of tennis executives.

“I’m no tennis exec, I don’t know, but if my sport had one of the most popular and marketable athletes on the planet, you know what I would do? I would probably make sure she felt comfortable and respected. But hey, what do I know, right? I’m just Captain America,” he joked.

Notably, Osaka has not returned to tennis since pulling out from Paris. But the good news is that she could return to the courts at the Tokyo Olympics event. No doubt, representing her country on her home turf will fill her with pride.

Naomi Osaka Shares Her Priceless Moment on and off the Tennis Court

Osaka’s incredible 2021 season so far

The 23-year-old Japanese began her year with a perfect start, winning her second Australian Open title. But since she missed out on the French Open, and then also opted out from Wimbledon Championships, the US Open remains her last Slam to try this year.

Hopefully, Osaka will return with a big bang on the WTA Tour and make the competition feel complete. Do you think she will successfully defend her US Open title this year?

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