Last night Naomi Osaka won the U.S. Open, becoming the first Japanese woman to win a Grand Slam singles title.
What should have been a joyous moment for the 20-year-old turned into a teary turn of events as she accepted the trophy, standing beside her idol Serena Williams. The win was marred by a feud between Williams and chair umpire Carlos Ramos.
Earlier in the night, Williams received a coaching violation from chair umpire Carlos Ramos, after her coach, Patrick Mouratoglou, made a gesture to her from the stands.
Williams, like the true hero that she is, responded by saying: ‘I don’t cheat to win, I’d rather lose.’
A couple of games later, Williams smashed her racket in frustration, garnering her a second code violation, as well as a point penalty.
This meant that Osaka started the next game at 15-0, which prompted Williams to call Ramos a ‘thief’ and demand an apology.
‘For you to attack my character is wrong,’ she said. ‘You owe me an apology. You will never be on a court with me as long as you live. You are the liar. You owe me an apology. Say it. Say you’re sorry. How dare you insinuate that I was cheating? You stole a point from me. You’re a thief too.’
‘There are men out here that do a lot worse, but because I’m a woman, because I’m a woman you’re going to take this away from me?’ she said, according to the New York Times. ‘That is not right.’
This ‘outburst’ resulted in a third code violation.
Despite the drama unfolding on court, Osaka ultimately held her nerve and won the match, 6-4. Meanwhile Williams refused to shake Ramos’s hand and demanded an apology.
When it was time to give out the trophies, the audience booed loudly. Many people were clearly unhappy about the way Williams had been treated during the match.
Standing on the podium waiting to be handed her trophy and a winner’s cheque for £3 million, Osaka heard only boos as an angry crowd took out their frustration on Ramos, who stood to the side.
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Both Osaka and Williams held back tears, and Williams put an arm around Osaka to comfort her. ‘I’m sorry. I know that everyone was cheering for her, and I’m sorry that it had to end like this,’ Osaka told the crowd. ‘I just want to say thank you for watching the match. Thank you.’
‘It was also my dream to play Serena in the US Open final, and I’m really glad I was able to do that. I’m grateful I was able to play with you. Thank you.’
Sensing that the controversial finish was casting a cloud over what should have been Osaka’s shining moment, Williams tried to calm the situation.
‘I don’t want to be rude. She played well. Let’s make this the best moment we can, let’s not boo any more,’ she said.
‘But let’s give everyone the credit where credit’s due. We just — we’re going to get through this and let’s be positive. So congratulations, Naomi. No more booing!’
Comforting your biggest rival when you feel like you’ve been treated unfairly? What an incredible show of support. We salut you, Serena.
