Naomi Osaka took to Twitter late Saturday night to clarify an awkward interview in which it appears Osaka was intentionally referring to her opponent with a wrong name, in an effort to embarrass her.
After Osaka defeated Jennifer Brady to claim her second Australian Open title, the 23-year-old winner tried to properly congratulate her opponent on a good match. Osaka, while in the middle of an interview, asked Brady if he preferred Jenny or Jennifer when he referred to her and when Brady replied with “Jenny”, Osaka apparently ignored her and yet he referred to her as Jennifer.
Osaka wrote an apology on Twitter, saying he heard Brady.
“I promise you my mind thought I called Jenny at the time and I was so confused why the crowd was laughing,” Osaka wrote on Twitter. “I am so sorry.”
Osaka won in two sets 6-4 6-3 to claim their fourth Grand Slam.