Naomi Osaka Reveals What Serena Williams Whispered To Her When US Open Crowd Was Booing
For many people who watched the U.S. Open Women's Final against Naomi Osaka and Serena Williams, one question still remains: what did Serena whisper to Naomi after the match?
Now that the dust has settled, Osaka has finally revealed what the tennis legend said.
On Wednesday, Osaka appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show to discuss her historic U.S. Open win and her new game.
The 20-year-old, who is of Haitian and Japanese descent, discussed the growing stress surrounding the trophy ceremony due to the boos from the crowd. Osaka, who became the first-ever Japanese-born Grand Slam winner, said she was crying when she heard the boos, because she thought they were aimed at her.
When Ellen asked Osaka what Serena whispered in her ear at that moment, Osaka smiled.
“She said that she was proud of me and that I should know that the crowd wasn’t booing at me,” Osaka told DeGeneres. “At the time, I did ... think that they were booing at me. I couldn’t tell what was going on, because it was just so loud in there. It was a little bit stressful.”
Osaka also admitted that she had no idea what was truly happening between Serena and the umpire, because she was taught to turn her back and stay focused when competitors confront the officials.
"I was looking away, but I heard a lot of people in the crowd making noises, and I really wanted to turn around, but I didn't," she said.
The interview concluded with Osaka revealing her celebrity crush is Michael B. Jordan, prompting Ellen to snap a photo of Osaka and send it the Black Panther star.