Naomi Osaka never entered the ongoing Wimbledon as one of the contenders. However, the 4-time Grand Slam champ did not expect to exit too soon as well. “Actually thought I could play well, like, in general, and make a deep run here,” Osaka said, following a third-round loss against Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova this Friday. 

Well, Osaka’s record on grass courts is not as good as on clay and hard courts. The Japanese is 5-4 on the Center Court and her career grass court record is 24-20. So, her early exit after losing to Anastasia [6-3, 4-6, 4-6] from Wimbledon was not as surprising as her Roland Garros exit earlier this year. But considering how confident the 27-year-old was after her early round wins in London, Osaka’s pain was visible during the post-game presser.

“I’m just gonna be a negative human being [Friday],” Osaka said. “I’m so sorry. I have nothing positive to say about myself, which is something I’m working on. It was my daughter’s birthday, so I was happy about that this week. Other than that, today, I’m just constantly replaying the match now.” Yes, a 3rd-round exit must be hard for Osaka and her well-wishers, but the 2x US Open champ was more pained by how she is being portrayed in the media, especially ESPN.

Osaka’s grievances are against an alleged bias that she shared on Threads, post-match. “Bro why is it every time I do a press conference after a loss the espns and blogs gotta clip it and put it up. Wtf, why don’t they clip my press conferences after I win? Like why push the narrative that I’m always sad?”

Well, she didn’t stop there. The former World No. 1 dropped another update on Threads, saying, “Sure I was disappointed a couple hours ago, now I’m motivated to do better. That’s human emotions. The way they clip me I feel like I should be fake happy all the time.” Well, the Japanese star has been known not to handle her losses very well. But how did things escalate to a Grand Slam Champion, making it personal with one of the biggest sports channels of our time?

Osaka had cleared 2 rounds before the clash with Pavlyuchenkova. While there were no updates from ESPN about her wins, the big result of Round 3 quickly saw them drop a clip of the Japanese, where she was in no mood to hide her disappointment. The 27-year-old didn’t like how she was portrayed. Moreover, it’s that the clip had her talking about her daughter. And they really put a vulnerable graphic of the 2021 Australian Open champion. Was ESPN being selective and in the wrong by putting the short clip of Osaka out there in the public space?

Well, Naomi Osaka does have a point. In this day and age of social media, ridicule and trolling can sometimes cross the line. But then again, there is a pattern that we are noticing with the former World No. 1 and how easily her negative points become sensational news bits.

The curious case of Naomi Osaka being an easy target

Immediately after the game ended on Friday, the first bit of headline came from Journalist Ben Rothenberg on X: “Naomi Osaka already rushed into the press quickly after a loss, which never goes well for her up there.” And then came her presser, which was as depressing from her point of view as it was revealing for the media.

And it ain’t the first time. After her French Open defeat just a few weeks ago, she gave an even more stirring interview. “I hate disappointing people. Even with (coach) Patrick, I was thinking just now, he goes from working with, like, the greatest player ever to, like, ‘What the f*** is this?’ Sorry for cursing. I hope I don’t get fined.” Well, if we really take a step back and try to analyze it, it’s as simple as daylight.

Here’s a tennis player who wears her heart on her sleeve. She doesn’t really give diplomatic interviews, especially when she is on the wrong end. And that sometimes gives the media the opportunity to get something out that may be trending or sensational, which fans would want to hear or read. But here’s the catch. While some fans just want to know what Naomi Osaka is really thinking and love her honesty, there are some elements that cross the line and use these passionate and emotional interviews for their amusement.

These social media users stay behind the cowardly veil of anonymity to be classless and spiteful, ruining it for everyone. As for ESPN, it is a tricky path to navigate. As a media house, they have to make sure they report the news while also protecting the stars to make the headlines. Check out EssentiallySports’ minute by minute update of the Championships on our Live Blog.