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Tennis star Naomi Osaka condemned fellow player Jelena Ostapenko over comments she made to her opponent Taylor Townsend following their US Open match, saying the remarks were “one of the worst things you can say to a Black tennis player in a majority white sport," per The Guardian.
On Wednesday (August 27), Townsend defeated the No. 25 seed Ostapenko 7-5, 6-1 during the second round of the US Open in New York. As the two met at the net, Ostapenko declined Townsend's handshake, instead insulting her opponent, who she accused of failing to apologize for a net-cord shot.
“No class. No education," Ostapenko told Townsend, garnering gasps and boos from the crowd.
Ostapenko later justified the remark, saying it was a reaction to what she deemed as unsportsmanlike behavior, and she denied any racial intent behind the remark. However, Osaka, who secured a 6–3, 6–1 win over Hailey Baptiste during the third round of the US Open, slammed Ostapenko for suggesting Townsend was "uneducated."
“I think obviously it’s one of the worst things you can say to a Black tennis player in a majority white sport,” Osaka said. “I know Taylor and I know how hard she’s worked and I know how smart she is, so she’s the furthest thing from uneducated or anything like that.”
“If you’re genuinely asking me about the history of Ostapenko, I don’t think that’s the craziest thing she’s said. I’m going to be honest. I think it’s ill-timing and the worst person you could have ever said it to. And I don’t know if she knows the history of it in America. But I know she’s never going to say that ever again in her life. It was just terrible," she added.
Following the incident, Townsend said she hopes the confrontation can lead to something positive.
“If I’m someone who can draw huge crowds into the stadiums as a name that can bring people to come and buy tickets and support the game, then that’s a crown that I’ll gladly wear,” she said.
When asked whether she believes Ostapenko's comments had racial undertones, Townsend said, “I didn’t take it that way.”
Townsend acknowledged “that has been a stigma in our community of being ‘not educated’ and all of the things, when it’s the furthest thing from the truth.”
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