Two-time U.S. Open champion Naomi Osaka has received a wild-card entry into the mixed doubles championship, where she will partner with Gael Monfils as late additions to the star-studded lineup.
Osaka and Monfils will face Lorenzo Musetti and Caty McNally in the opening round, with 16 teams competing for the top $1 million prize. Osaka returned to the U.S. Open singles draw last year after taking a hiatus from tennis in 2023, but is 2-15 in her doubles career.
The former World No. 1 withdrew from the Cincinnati Open after reaching the Canadian Open final, where she lost to 18-year-old prospect Victoria Mboko. Near the end of the match, Osaka broke down in tears and later apologized after receiving backlash for snubbing Mboko in her on-court interview.
Osaka is a four-time Grand Slam champion and was once dubbed the ‘Queen of hard court’ after dominating the surface between 2018 and 2021. However, she’s struggled for consistency since her last Grand Slam win, the 2021 Australian Open.
The 27-year-old has taken breaks from tennis for several reasons, including mental health struggles and falling pregnant with her first child. However, Osaka clinched her first title since 2021 earlier this year after winning the WTA 125 Open de Saint-Malo tournament.
Osaka then reached her first WTA 1000 final since 2022 at the Canadian Open but became emotional when the match slipped away. After losing to Mboko, Osaka gave a short interview but received backlash for failing to acknowledge the teenager who called her a role model.
“Thanks, I guess,” Osaka said as the Montreal crowd applauded her efforts. “I don’t really want to take up too much time, so I’ll just say thank you to everyone.
“Thank you to my team, thank you to the ball kids. Thank you to the organizers and all the volunteers. I hope you had a good night.”
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It was the most significant moment of Mboko’s career, but she thanked Osaka during her winning speech. “I also want to thank Naomi for an incredible match,” she said. I’ve always looked up to her when I was really little, so it’s always great to play with an amazing player like you.”
After being called out on social media, Osaka admitted it was an honest mistake and apologized to Mboko via Threads. “Thanks Montreal it’s been a really great run,” Osaka wrote.
“I also want to say sorry and congratulations to Victoria. 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 and I was so focused on not having the same speech as IW 2018 finals or the Jenny/Jennifer situation that I tried to make my speech as short as possible. Thanks everyone for the week, see you in NY.”
AloJapan.com