Naomi Osaka: From Darling to Disliked?

Naomi Osaka spent years as one of tennis’s most beloved figures. The support wasn’t unearned. She burst onto the scene as a young phenom delivering performances that had people whispering about a potential successor to Serena Williams herself.

Her first Grand Slam title came against that very legend in a 2018 US Open final that will be remembered for all the wrong reasons. The infamous confrontation between Williams and umpire Carlos Ramos overshadowed what should have been Osaka’s singular moment of triumph. Even that injustice worked in her favor at the time, generating waves of sympathy for a young champion denied her proper celebration.

That goodwill has evaporated. The shift didn’t happen overnight, and it’s worth being clear about what Osaka isn’t. She’s not a controversial figure in the traditional sense. She doesn’t court drama or create headlines through bad behavior. Her French Open withdrawal during a mental health crisis drew some criticism, but most people understood and moved on. A few other minor incidents raised eyebrows but never seriously damaged her reputation.

What changed her standing in the tennis community can be traced to two specific moments, neither particularly egregious on their own, but both revealing something that fans found difficult to forgive.

The Canadian Open Snub

The first incident came at the 2025 Canadian Open. Osaka fought her way to the final, which is a significant achievement given her well-documented struggles in recent years. Her commitment to tennis had been questioned after extended absences, first for mental health and then for pregnancy. So reaching a final again mattered, big time. 

She faced Victoria Mboko, a rising Canadian star playing in front of her home crowd. The support was overwhelming and one-sided. Mboko rode that energy to victory, and the loss clearly hit Osaka hard.

What happened during the trophy ceremony became the problem. Osaka gave a perfunctory speech, thanking the organizers, her team, and the ball kids. She didn’t congratulate Mboko, who had just won her first significant title and had spoken glowingly about Osaka being her idol.

The omission was glaring. While Osaka has expressed discomfort with public speaking before, this wasn’t her first trophy ceremony. Tennis etiquette is clear on this point: you congratulate your opponent regardless of how bitter the defeat. It’s not optional; it’s basic sportsmanship.

The backlash was immediate and harsh, particularly online where fans dissected her behavior frame by frame. Osaka eventually apologized and congratulated Mboko publicly, revealing they’d spoken privately and that Mboko hadn’t taken offense. But the damage was done. The moment exposed something fans hadn’t seen before: a champion who seemed unable or unwilling to handle defeat with grace.

The Australian Open Controversy

The second incident happened just now at the 2026 Australian Open during her match against Sorana Cirstea. Between first and second serves, Osaka began audibly pumping herself up, repeatedly saying “come on” to build momentum.

Celebrations in tennis are common and accepted; however, what Osaka was doing crossed a line that exists in the sport’s unwritten code. You don’t hype yourself up between serves in a single service game. It disrupts your opponent’s rhythm and invites the crowd into moments that should remain neutral. It’s considered poor form, part of tennis etiquette that players generally respect even if no rule explicitly forbids it.

Cirstea complained to the umpire, who did nothing despite having the authority to intervene. The Romanian’s frustration grew as Osaka continued the behavior throughout the match and they exchanged words after the handshake. When asked about it afterward, Osaka, who won, offered a dismissive response: “Sorry she was mad about it,” followed by a shrug.

The reaction from tennis fans was swift and unforgiving. The shrug became the symbol of everything wrong with the moment. It suggested Osaka either didn’t understand why her behavior was problematic or simply didn’t care. Either interpretation played poorly.

The Fall from Grace

The online response painted a stark picture of how dramatically sentiment had shifted. A player who was once almost universally beloved now struggled to find defenders. Scroll through social media reactions and you’d be hard-pressed to find positive comments among the hundreds criticizing her behavior.

Whether any of this matters to Osaka personally is unclear. But the transformation is undeniable. Two incidents, neither rising to the level of serious misconduct, combined to fundamentally alter how the tennis community views her. What they revealed was something fans value deeply: grace in victory and defeat, respect for opponents and traditions, humility in the face of the sport’s customs.

Osaka’s responses suggested she either didn’t share those values or didn’t think they applied to her. In a sport built on tradition and unwritten codes of conduct, that’s a difficult position to recover from.

Whether this permanently damages her reputation or represents a temporary rough patch remains to be seen. Tennis has short memory for some transgressions and long memory for others. But right now, among tennis fans, Naomi Osaka’s stock has never been lower. The darling is gone, replaced by someone far more polarizing. And she has no one to blame but herself.