Naomi Osaka, the four-time Grand Slam champion, strongly defended fellow American Taylor Townsend on Friday, condemning Jelena Ostapenko’s remarks as “one of the worst things you can say to a Black tennis player.” Osaka’s words came amid a heated exchange at the U.S. Open that’s sparked widespread reaction.
Osaka Condemns Insensitive Comments
Osaka spoke after her straight-set win to reach the third round. She called Townsend “the furthest thing from uneducated,” acknowledging Townsend’s intellect and dedication. “I know how smart she is, so she’s the furthest thing from uneducated or anything like that,” Osaka said. “I think obviously it’s one of the worst things you can say to a Black tennis player in a majority white sport.”
Osaka added that Ostapenko’s words showed poor timing. “If you’re genuinely asking me about the history of Ostapenko, I don’t think that’s the craziest thing she’s said,” she said. “It was just terrible.”
Taylor Townsend, who defeated Ostapenko 7–5, 6–1 on Wednesday, reflected on the incident with composure in her press remarks Thursday. “I’m really proud of the way that I handled it,” she said. “I didn’t allow the situation to take me out of my character or to lose my integrity as a person.”
She added that the phrase “not educated” carries a harmful stigma. “That has been a stigma in our community of being ‘not educated’, when it’s the furthest thing from the truth,” Townsend said.
She also noted wide support from peers and fans but said she doesn’t want to keep drama going. “Everyone said it was disrespectful. It was also very hypocritical,” she said, saying Ostapenko is “not known to have sportsmanship” herself.
The controversial comments caused an uproar. Ostapenko insisted she meant no racial offense and denied being racist. She posted on social media: “I was NEVER racist… I respect all nations of people in the world.”
Tennis analyst Prakash Amritraj called Ostapenko’s language “from an ugly place” and said “there’s no space for that in the sport.”