Naomi Osaka Calls Jelena Ostapenko’s Comments to Taylor Townsend ‘One of the Worst Things You Can Say to a Black Tennis Player’

Osaka’s response reframed the moment. She argued that calling a Black player “no class” or “no education” isn’t harmless trash talk—it’s language with a history.

Her tone wasn’t incendiary; it was instructive. She asked the sport to hear not only what was said, but who it was said to, and why that context changes the impact.