Naomi Osaka’s first round clash at the Australian Open was all about the pre-match.
But Naomi Osaka’s second round clash at the Australian Open was all about the post-match.
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Romanian veteran Sorana Cirstea delivered an angry spray to the two-time Open champion after their Thursday night clash on Margaret Court Arena.
“You don’t know what fair play is, my friend,” Cirstea appeared to say at the net.
“You’ve been playing for so long and you have no idea what fair play is.”
She was angry about Osaka saying “c’mon” to herself while Cirstea was serving during the third set, complaining to the umpire about it at one stage.
Sorana Cirstea confronts Naomi Osaka.Source: FOX SPORTS
“Apparently a lot of c’mons that she was angry about, but whatever,” Osaka said post-match.
“I tried to play well. I think I hit a lot of unforced errors but I tried my best.
“She’s a great player. I think it was her last Australian Open, so… I’m sorry she was mad about it.”
Asked if it was about the c’mons between Cirstea’s serves, Osaka said: “I think so but like, she could’ve asked me.
“Like… bruh. I’m sorry.”
Osaka appeared rattled through the rest of the interview.
“That was the assiest handshake anyone has ever given Naomi Osaka, and clearly she was rattled by it,” Ben Rothenberg, the author of a book on Osaka, tweeted.
“Cirstea leaves her last Australian Open whining in defeat, which is unfortunate.”
Both players were asked about the exchange in their post-match press conferences.
“There was no drama. It was just a five-second exchange between two players that have been on tour for a long time. It stays between us,” Cirstea said, adding when pressed: “I will not talk about that.
“Look, this is my last Australian Open, I’ve been playing for 20 years, and I think it’s a bit more going on than just a five-second discussion at the end that I’ve had with Naomi.”
Osaka offered an apology for her initial reaction.
“I get that emotions were very high for her, and I also want to apologise … I think the first couple of things I said on court (after the match) were disrespectful,” Osaka said.
“I don’t like disrespecting people … that’s not what I do. When I’m pumping myself up, in my head, I’m not like, ‘OK, I’m going to distract the other person’. It’s purely for me.
“I’ve never been involved in something like this before, so I don’t know if we’re supposed to leave it on the court and belike, ‘Hey, how you doing’?
“I’m a little confused. I guess that emotions were very high for her.”
AloJapan.com