Naomi Osaka took to Twitter late Saturday night to clarify an awkward interview in which it appeared that Osaka was deliberately referring to her opponent by the wrong name in an attempt to embarrass her.
After Osaka beat Jennifer Brady to claim her second Australian Open title, the 23-year-old winner tried to properly congratulate her opponent on a good game. Osaka, while in the middle of an interview, asked Brady if she preferred Jenny or Jennifer when referring to her and when Brady responded “Jenny”, Osaka seemingly ignored her and still called her Jennifer.
Osaka tweeted an apology, saying she misheard Brady.
“I promise you my mind thought I was calling her Jenny at the time and I was so confused why the crowd was laughing,” Osaka tweeted. “I’m very sorry.”
Osaka won 6-4 6-3 in straight sets to claim her fourth Grand Slam.