While we are all up in our feelings over Serena Williams‘ less than stellar on court behavior and umpire, Carlos Ramos’ overzealousness in Saturday’s U.S Open final, can we take a moment to applaud Naomi Osaka on her first win?
This should be Naomi’s time to shine in the spotlight. But her victory has been overshadowed by the whole Serena drama.
For every person waving the “I stand with Serena” flag, there is another person bashing her for throwing a tantrum over being called out for her glaring misconduct- but I am here screaming what about Naomi?! It’s not every day a 20-year-old girl gets to play against the number 1 and beat her to a win in a grand slam final.
I mean this is not the first time Serena has thrown a fit on-court, heck! She once threatened to shove a ball down an official’s throat (Google it) so, what’s so special about last Saturday’s episode that it had to overshadow Naomi’s win?
The 19th ranked tennis star had consistently shown over the past 3 years, that she is a rising star to reckon with. Her previous wins at other big stages had set the ball rolling for the praises she rightly deserves after her recent feat.
Tennis fans should not be quick to forget the striking difference between the accolades that followed after Serena’s maiden grand win and that of the tennis star of Haitian decent.
Perhaps the black community – which has been the most vocal in expressing their outrage – should see Naomi’s win as a signal that there is another girl of colour capable of dominating the female tennis stage like Serena. Naomi should be celebrated. Not booed.
