The words had a piercing clarity in the silence dictated by tennis custom.
Although other spectators cheered and chanted her name, she was blanked in the first set and outplayed 6-4 in the second by Kudermetova, who’s on the rise but hasn’t approached the level Osaka, a four-time Grand Slam singles champion, can reach at peak form.
Lakers teammate Carmelo Anthony asked for the ejection of two fans at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia after he said they called him “boy.” Austin Rivers of the Denver Nuggets, angered by insults targeting his family during a game in Oklahoma City, had two fans ejected from their courtside seats.
Osaka, who is of Black and Japanese heritage, said the taunt Saturday had led her to think about the racial abuse heaped on superstar sisters Serena and Venus Williams and their father, Richard, here in 2001 after Venus’ late withdrawal from a scheduled semifinal against Serena.
“I’ve watched a video of Venus and Serena getting heckled here, and if you’ve never watched it, you should watch it.
Navratilova also said Osaka would have to “toughen it out somehow” in the future and said Black players Althea Gibson, Chanda Rubin and Zina Garrison had endured tougher experiences in the sport than Osaka has had.
“This is something that she needs to deal with because it will happen again most likely,” Navratilova said in her role as a Tennis Channel commentator.
Former men’s tour player Paul Annacone, now a coach and commentator, urged Osaka to prioritize her well-being.
“We’ve also all been to sporting events, and we all know that at sporting events you hear stuff and people shout stuff that they probably shouldn’t.
The same is true on a smaller scale at baseball and hockey games, where conversations, music and in-game promotions make noise a constant and customary background.
Before the tournament began, Osaka said she felt like she was at peace with herself.
She became the first female journalist to be honored with a plaque in the Hall of Fame of a major professional sport as the 2005 winner of the Hockey Hall of Fame’s Elmer Ferguson Award, awarded to writers “who have brought honor to journalism and to hockey.” A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., and graduate of Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, she has covered 17 Olympics.