Osaka apologizes to Mboko: ‘I was in a daze’

Amid a milestone home victory for Victoria Mboko, her opponent Naomi Osaka drew away some headlines for her post-match behaviour.

On Friday, Osaka apologized to Mboko for not congratulating her following the win.

“I also want to say sorry and congratulations to Victoria,” Osaka wrote on Threads. “You played a great match and have an amazing career ahead.”

“I realize I didn’t congratulate you on the court. Honestly I was in a daze…”

Mboko put the finishing touches on an unexpected Cinderella run on Thursday in Montreal with a 2-6, 6-4, 6-1 win in front of a crowd that showered the Canadian teenager with praise.

Osaka occasionally looked affected by the audience throughout the match and was visibly distraught during her closing remarks.

There aren’t many tennis professionals that better understand what Mboko is currently going through than Osaka. The Japanese 27-year-old turned pro at 15 and won her first major title at 20, beating Serena Williams in the 2018 US Open.

Both Osaka and Mboko withdrew from the Cincinnati Open on Friday.