NEW YORK: Naomi Osaka quipped that she “didn’t dream to lose” when she grew up envisioning a Grand Slam final with Serena Williams, but the 20-year-old Japanese star was understandably overcome with emotion after making that dream come true on Saturday night.
“I know that she really wanted to have the 24th Grand Slam, right?” Osaka said after overcoming Williams, 6-2, 6-4 in a dramatic final to become Japan’s first Grand Slam singles champion. “Everyone knows this. It’s on the commercials, it’s everywhere. When I step onto the court, I feel like a different person, right? I’m not a Serena fan. I’m just a tennis player playing another tennis player.
“But then when I hugged her at the net,” she trailed off, fighting back tears. “When I hugged her at the net, I felt like a little kid again.”
“I know that she really wanted to have the 24th Grand Slam, right? Everyone knows this. It’s on the commercials, it’s everywhere. When I step onto the court, I feel like a different person, right? I’m not a Serena fan. I’m just a tennis player playing another tennis player. But when I hugged her at the net, I felt like a little kid again.”
It was an emotional day for Osaka, who earned a second win of the season over her idol, having first beat her at the Miami Open after capturing her first WTA title at the BNP Paribas Open. Williams was trying to become the first mom to win a Grand Slam title since Kim Clijsters in 2011, and tie Margaret Court’s all-time record of 24 major titles.
“When I was growing up, I did a whole report on her in third grade. I colored it and everything. I said, ‘I want to be like her.’
“For me, I’m always going to remember the Serena that I love. It doesn’t change anything for me. She was really nice to me at the net and on the podium. I don’t really see what would change.”
