New York: Naomi Osaka said that the use of words like “no education” and “no class” to criticize a black tennis player was among the worst things to say when the debate raged over a heated row between Taylor Townsend and Jelena Ostapenko on the US Open Thursday.
Townsend, who is black, overcame 2017 French Open champion Ostapenko 7-5 6-1 in a tough second round match a day earlier, but the real excitement came shortly after the match when the couple verbally collided online, with the Latvian repeatedly swung his finger against the American.
Townsend revealed part of the exchange during her on-Court interview, after which she said at a press conference that Ostapenko should answer if there were “racial undertones” for the change.
Ostapenko said on Instagram later that her anger came from Townsend’s rejection of apologizing after winning a point in a central moment when her ball cut the net and remained into play and accused the American of being “disrespectful.”
The Latvian added in another statement that she had never been racist in her life, but Osaka weighed in and said that the words that Ostapenko used during the change were in bad taste.
“It’s one of the worst things you can say to a black tennis player in a majority white sport,” said four times Grand Slam champion Osaka.
“I know Taylor and I know how hard she has worked and I know how smart she is, so she’s the longest thing from uneducated or something similar.”
Osaka, born of a Japanese mother and Haitian father, has been an obvious supporter of the Black Lives Matter movement both in the United States where she lives and in Japan. She was hailed for supporting the campaign during her race for The Flushing Meadows title in 2020.
The 27-year-old used his platform to highlight racial injustice in the United States to a wider audience by carrying various black face masks-every name of an African American killed in recent years each of her seven matches.
“If you really ask me about Ostapenko’s story, I don’t think that’s the craziest thing she has said. I want to be honest,” Osaka continued with a smile.
“I think it was badly timed and said to the worst possible person. And I don’t know if she knows the story of it in America.
“I know she will never say it ever again in her life. But yes, it was just terrible. It’s really bad.”
By approaching the main reason for the controversy, Osaka said she would not care if an opponent apologized or not for a net.
“I certainly wouldn’t care about the point where it would affect me so much that I got very angry,” Osaka said.
“It’s up to the person, whether they apologize or not, but if it’s really close, I can see why they don’t.”
