Naomi Osaka said she held back tears after video messages from the families of victims of police violence were played to her in the aftermath of her US Open quarter-final win on Tuesday.
As well as reaching the last four of a major for the first time since her Australian Open triumph in 2019, beating American Shelby Rogers 6-3 6-4, Osaka has spent the fortnight making racial injustice a talking point at each of her matches.
On the eve of the US Open she announced plans to wear masks during the tournament with the names of black men and women who have died at the hands of police. It is a way the No 4 seed is choosing to amplify the Black Lives Matter movement and honour the victims. She previously participated in a sport boycott at the Western & Southern Open the week before playing at Flushing Meadows, in response to the shooting of Jacob Blake in Wisconsin.
In an interview with US broadcaster ESPN on Tuesday, the 2018 champion was surprised with a message from Sybrina Fulton, mother of Trayvon Martin, and Marcus Arbery, father of Ahmaud Arbery - two of five names she has worn on her masks - in which they thanked her for using her platform.
"I feel like they're so strong, I'm not sure what I would be able to do if I was in their position, but I feel like I'm a vessel at this point, in order to spread awareness," Osaka said. "It's not going to dull the pain, but hopefully I can help with anything that they need."
Afterwards in her post-match press conference, she gave more detail: "I was just trying really hard not to cry. For me, it's a bit surreal. It's extremely touching that they would feel touched by what I'm doing. For me, I feel like what I've doing is nothing. It's a speck of what I could be doing. It was really emotional. I'm really grateful and I'm really humbled."
It was a poignant moment, which followed a tone-deaf on-court interview with broadcaster Rennae Stubbs, who told Osaka she had been "trying to guess what name is going to be on the masks every single day" and asked for a clue about who would appear next, adding: "We can't wait for that next mask."
The former Australian player was lambasted on social media for the bizarre line of questioning, but has since defended herself. "Of course I meant well, the parents of these victims are so thankful that Naomi is doing this," Stubbs wrote on Twitter. "We even have them on video talking about it. I think the victims would love to know we are NOT FORGETTING THEIR NAMES! I would never disparage them! If u know me u would know that."
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