Tennis Court: During her second-round loss to Veronika Kudermetova at Indian Wells, Naomi Osaka was moved to tears after a nasty shout from a fan.
A female fan mocked Osaka when she was broken in the opening game, and she was subsequently spotted wiping away tears after she lost 6-0 6-4 to Kudermetova.
Following the match, the tournament’s 2018 champion addressed the crowd, saying the situation reminded her of the 2001 tournament when Venus and Serena Williams were booed.
“I’ve been heckled before and it didn’t upset me,” Osaka said as tears welled up in her eyes.
“But being heckled here. I’ve watched a video of Venus and Serena getting heckled here and if you’ve never watched it, you should watch it. And I don’t know why, but it went into my head and got replayed a lot.”
“I just want to say thank you and congratulations.”
Osaka has already spoken openly about her mental health issues and took a vacation from tennis after an upset loss at the US Open last year.
However, the 24-year-old had stated that she was in a good emotional position heading into the competition.
Even when Osaka rallied in the second set, Kudermetova was able to finish out the four-time Grand Slam champion.
She stated, “It was a pretty challenging match for me against Naomi.”
“She’s a fantastic player and warrior, and I’m quite pleased with my performance today. I was completely concentrated, and I’m overjoyed to be here and perform in front of you.”
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