Osaka credits 'mental exercises' for filtering out negativity following Indian Wells incident

Former World No.1 Naomi Osaka hopes to filter out any negativity in her preparation for the clay-court season as she continues to heal from being heckled in a second-round loss at Indian Wells last month.

The four-time Grand Slam champion was broken in the first game at the tournament in California when a fan shouted "Naomi, you suck" and Osaka could later be seen wiping away tears.

However, Osaka said her focus was on the positive.

"I'm not going to lie, it's not like everyday is being perfect," Osaka told reporters when speaking about her struggles with mental health.

"I talk to my therapist at least once a week and I just try to be more open to things. Say something happens that kind of throws me off my groove, I try to see it from a different perspective. I was talking to my therapist about that, being more open to all the possibilities.

"I would say that filtering the negativity from a minority is something that I'm getting better at doing. I'm doing mental exercises to focus on the positive," Osaka added, explaining that she is staying away from Twitter because "it is way more negative than Instagram".

She also said the Indian Wells experience allowed her another opportunity to grow as a person, saying: "Even though I really hated the experience, I'm glad it happened to me. Indian Wells was one of those moments. I wish it didn't happen but I'm glad it did."

The Japanese superstar received a wildcard entry to the Madrid Open, and will face Anastasia Potapova in the first round.