After coming up short to Victoria Mboko in the final of the National Bank Open on Thursday, Naomi Osaka kept her speech brief.
In total, Osaka spoke for under 20 seconds, thanking her team, the ball kids, the tournament organizers, and the volunteers before posing for photos and giving Mboko her moment on stage.
“Thanks, I guess. I don’t really want to take up too much time. I’ll just say thank you to everyone. Thank you to my team, the ball kids, organizers, and volunteers. I hope you guys had a good night.”
The former world No. 1’s speech notably didn’t include a congratulatory message to her opponent or Mboko’s team, earning Osaka criticism online.
CBC Reporter Devin Heroux wrote: “That was such poor form by Osaka not congratulating Mboko. And now Mboko giving Osaka her flowers in her moment of victory. The 18-year-year old all class and grace.”
Famed coach Brad Gilbert also offered some gentle criticism as well: “Props to Silent K on excellent speech after losing 7/6 in 3rd, I know Double Osaka struggles with social anxiety But gosh congratulate your opponent, especially one that looked upped to you, not mention you just let the last few games going a final.”
MatchPoint Canada Host Ben Lewis offered a similar take, expressing disappointment in Osaka: ” I don’t want to pick on a four-time Grand Slam winner and champion while she’s down but I will say… I’m disappointed Naomi Osaka couldn’t collect herself after the loss and congratulate Victoria Mboko for what she accomplished. Osaka was once her age and dreaming big. A shame.”
Naomi Osaka ‘Completely Forgot’ to Congratulate Victoria Mboko
Following her loss to Victoria Mboko, Naomi Osaka skipped out on her post-match press conference. Instead, the four-time Grand Slam winner participated in what appears to be a Q&A, with quotes then distributed to members of the press.
Montreal Gazette’s Harry North relayed several quotes from Osaka via social media, showing fans a photo of the printouts he and other media members received.
In response to one question about some of the positive things she can take away from her run to the final, Osaka quickly mentioned that she completely forgot to congratulate her opponent during her on-court speech.
“This morning I was very grateful. I don’t know why my emotions flipped so quickly, but I’m really happy to have played the final.
“I think Victoria played really well. I completely forgot to congratulate her on the court. Yeah, I mean she did really amazing.”
Mboko Still Looks up to Osaka Following Montreal Final
While some fans were disappointed by Naomi Osaka’s on-court speech during Thursday’s trophy presentation, Victoria Mboko indicated that she continues to look up to Osaka, and despite the former world No. 1’s frustrations on-court, there’s no bad blood between the two.
The Montreal Press quoted Mboko as saying:
“I still think Naomi is an incredible player, and it doesn’t ever change what I think of her. I think she’s still a really nice girl. I still look up to her. Nothing really changes after the match. I mean, I’m really happy that I was able to win today, but I mean, to play against her was also a really special moment for me.”
Mboko is now scheduled to head to Cincinnati, where she will collide with No. 14-seeded Diana Shnaider tomorrow in the Round of 64 as she looks to continue her climb up the WTA rankings, however, the new world No. 24 is also nursing a wrist injury sustained in her semifinal match.
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