Novak Djokovic’s wife, Jelena Djokovic, shared her opinion on Naomi Osaka’s encounter with Sorana Cîrstea at the Australian Open. She sided with the Romanian player, accusing Osaka of causing a distraction amid the match.
Osaka and Cristea contested each other in the second round at Melbourne. The former World No. 1 dominated this round, registering a 6-3, 4-6, 6-2 win. However, following this loss, the 35-year-old was visibly upset with the Japanese player, as she shared an icy handshake with her. This was because the Romanian player was upset with the World No. 17 for not playing a fair game.
These accusations were due to Osaka pumping herself up between Cîrstea’s serves, which she didn’t like at all. The incident is currently the talk of the tennis community, and Djokovic’s wife also spoke about it. She came out in support of Cristea, saying:
“I’m surprised that this is not being called hindrance. In between two serves, when crowds are applauding or shouting, the chair umpire asks not to shout between serves as it is disturbing to the player.”
She further said that she was surprised by the umpire and Osaka thinking that it was fair. Following Jelena’s statement, one of the tennis insiders slammed her for criticizing Osaka. Taking to X, he wrote:
“The Djokovic’s are aware of how insane their fan base are. Jelena making that comment knows what it’s going to do, I’m sorry but she should have kept that in the GC absolutely no one asked her for opinion. Mind you her husband is always the one complaining about people’s opinions.”
What did Naomi Osaka say about her controversy with Sorana Cîrstea at the Australian Open
Naomi Osaka spoke to the media in the press conference after her second-round showdown against Sorana Cîrstea. Here, she was fielded questions surrounding the ins and outs of her match, including her cold encounter with her opponent. She revealed the exact thought that was in her head while the whole thing unfolded, stating: (1:19 onwards)
“I just thought that that was like I was like, “Huh, that’s interesting.” And that was my exact thought in my head.” said Naomi Osaka.
“Honestly, no. Like I for me, I’ve never like no one’s ever complained about it before. And also the umpire didn’t tell me like I was wrong. Like the umpire said I was fine. So I was like, “Okay.” And that was kind of what I thought. Like I thought we moved past it.”
