When Victoria Azarenka’s forehand went wide, Naomi Osaka had her moment something she should be celebrating with the fans who are missing here due to coronavirus pandemic.
Osaka is 22. She is the first woman to win 3 Grand Slam titles at this very young age since Maria Sharapova. Osaka is already the highest-paid woman player in the world now and since is only getting better.
While that being said, Osaka also shoulders the burden of rising awareness regarding the racism. She masks with different names on it, the names of the souls who were brutally murdered because of racism.
This time it was Tamir Rice, a 12 years old who was brutally killed by the police in 2014.
Osaka did not start very well. There were multiple unforced errors which led Azarenka to win the first set with ease. She almost made it to 3-0 in the second as well.
But Osaka managed to find rocket serves from nowhere launched an ace to get back. She got the set and the third set was all about her. When Azarenka found the net in the final point, Osaka looked up thanking the almighty.
She took time to soak it all in. She went on to lie down on the court and lived the moment.
Azarenka’s run is also nothing short of an inspiration. The 31-year-old had lost everything during the custodial battle and almost left the sport. Thankfully, she managed to get through that as well as injuries to comeback stronger.
She won the Western & Southern Open after Osaka pulled out in the final due to hamstring injury. Oh, this happened when she couldn’t even find a way to win a match for a whole year.
In the US Open, she had Serena Williams in the semi-finals and rallied past her with a difficult match. She was so close to win it here as well but Osaka was just too strong.
On the whole, both the women served more than just the match. Both deserves to be celebrated.
