Naomi Osaka sent shockwaves after announcing her retirement (or just refusal to play?) from the semifinal of the Western & Southern Open following the horrible shooting of Jacob Blake. In her statement, Naomi commented that before being an athlete, she is a black woman and therefore she took the tough decision to start the conversation.
Eventually, the organization decided to postpone the semifinals that were scheduled to take place on Thursday to Friday. This decision also came after other leagues chose to stop playing such as the NBA, MLS, and MLB.
This was the official statement from the tournament organizations:
“As a sport, tennis is collectively taking a stance against racial inequality and social injustice that once again has been thrust to the forefront in the United States. The USTA, ATP Tour, and WTA have decided to recognize this moment in time by pausing tournament play at the Western & Southern Open on Thursday, August 27. Play will resume on Friday, August 28.”
Did Naomi Osaka concede a walkover or she is still playing in New York?
After the revelation that the Western & Southern Open scheduled will be postponed of one day, it’s unclear if Naomi Osaka’s refusal to compete means conceding a walkover or she will still play the semifinal on Friday.
Osaka in New York, ranking, and results in 2020
Currently the world no.10, Osaka has a 8-3 win-loss record in 2020. Naomi is competing in New York where she beat Karolina Muchova 6-75 6-4 6-2, Dayana Yastremska 6-3 6-1 and Anett Kontaveit 4-6 6-2 7-5.
Naomi Osaka is meant to face Mertens in the semifinal. The head to head is 1-1.
The Japanese won 5 titles in her career: all of them conquered on hard courts. (See the list of her titles)
