NAOMI OSAKA FOUGHT BACK TEARS AS SHE WAS AFFECTED BY A HECKLER IN HER LOSS AT INDIAN WELLS

Naomi Osaka fought back tears after exiting Indian Wells in the second round as she said a heckler in the crowd affected her. A spectator in the crowd yelled “Naomi, you suck,” after the four-time Grand Slam winner lost the first game in her second round match against Veronika Kudermetova. Kudermetova went on to win the match 6-0, 6-4. The 24-year-old asked the umpire be given the microphone to address the crowd, but her request was rejected. She also spoke to a tournament supervisor after the first set. Osaka explained afterwards how she was affected by the insult on Stadium 1. She said it reminded her of racially charged insults directed at Serena and Venus Williams at the same tournament in 2001. “I just wanted to say thank you. I feel like I’ve cried enough on camera,” said Osaka, whose father is Black and mother is Japanese. To be honest, I’ve gotten heckled before. It didn’t really bother me, but it’s like, 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 it got replayed a lot. I’m trying not to cry. I just want to say thank you and congratulations [to Kudermetova]. Just thank you.” #naomi #osaka #indianwells


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