Martina Navratilova and Lindsay Davenport condemn Naomi Osaka’s outburst during opponent’s serve, calling it a fundamental breach of tennis etiquette.
MELBOURNE: Tennis legends Martina Navratilova and Lindsay Davenport have criticised Naomi Osaka for a breach of “basic etiquette” during her Australian Open second-round match.
The incident occurred during Osaka’s win against Sorana Cirstea, which was marred by a testy exchange and an icy handshake. Veteran Cirstea took issue with Osaka shouting “come on” between the Romanian’s first and second serves.
During her on-court interview, two-time Australian Open winner Osaka was dismissive of Cirstea, but later apologised for being “disrespectful”. Navratilova, a 59-time major champion, analysed the incident on the Tennis Channel.
“I can get what (Osaka) said after the match because it’s kind of in the heat of the moment — she was surprised by Cirstea’s reaction at the handshake,” Navratilova said. “But you cannot be talking out loud between first and second serves of your opponent.”
She clarified that Osaka likely did not act with malicious intent. “Cirstea was ready to hit the second serve and Osaka said ‘come on’ — that’s not right. I don’t think she does it on purpose, she doesn’t realise it,” Navratilova added.
Fellow American Davenport, the 2000 Australian Open champion, echoed the sentiment on the same programme. “Osaka’s 28 years of age, she’s played tennis for a long time, it’s just something you don’t really do,” Davenport stated.
Davenport expressed confidence that the behaviour would not be repeated. “We all know Osaka doesn’t have a mean bone in her body, so I would be surprised if she continued with that behaviour,” she said.
She framed the issue as a fundamental rule of the sport. “You can pump yourself by hitting your thigh (but) you can’t yell out in between serves. Basic tennis etiquette 101.”
Cirstea sought to downplay the confrontation in her post-match press conference, insisting 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,” she said.
