Montreal champion Victoria Mboko snubbed by idol Naomi Osaka in ‘sad’ runner-up speech

Canadian teenager Victoria Mboko has clinched her first WTA Tour title, overcoming a slow start to defeat former world No.1 Naomi Osaka in three sets in Montreal.

The 18-year-old Mboko joins Faye Urban in 1969 and Bianca Andreescu in 2019 as the only Canadians to win the home event in the Open Era.

The 2-6 6-4 6-1 victory over her idol was one to savour but Osaka’s abrupt runner-up speech stood out, with the Japanese star failing to acknowledge Mboko.

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Osaka struggled through the third set and was clearly disappointed to miss out on her first title since the 2021 Australian Open.

“I don’t really want to take up too much time so I’ll just say thank you to everyone,” she said.

“Thank you to my team, thank you to the ballkids, thank you to the organisers and all the volunteers. I hope you guys had a good night.”

It was later announced Osaka would skip her post-match press conference, with the WTA providing written quotes.

“I think Victoria played really well. I completely forgot to congratulate her on the court. Yeah, I mean, she did really amazing, so…” Osaka was quoted as saying.

Osaka infamously had her maiden grand slam triumph spoiled at the 2018 US Open, reduced to tears on the dais as the American crowd booed during the presentation following a controversial match for her opponent and idol Serena Williams.

She won three more slams before taking a break from tennis in 2021 to focus on her mental health and wellbeing.

With Osaka’s journey in mind Australian tennis great Rennae Stubbs said it was “sad” that the runner-up did not congratulate Mboko.

“The way Naomi handled it in the end was a little 😳,” Stubbs wrote on social media.

“When you think about all the things she has gone through, the big matches she’s won, that was a capitulation — and the speech😳!

“To not congratulate Vicky, who’s looked up to you her whole career and just won this massive title was sad.”

In her on-court speech Mboko thanked Osaka “for an incredible match”, with the crowd offering a hearty applause.

“I’ve always looked up to her when I was really little. It’s always great to play with such an amazing player like you,” she said.

Osaka entered the tournament on the back of her recent split with high-profile coach Patrick Mouratoglou.

The Montreal final was her first appearance in a WTA 1000 decider since April 2022 prior to taking time off the tour to give birth to daughter Shai.

Mboko, meanwhile, will enter the US Open at a career-high ranking inside the world’s top 30.

The teenager, born in the US to Congolese parents before growing up in Toronto, started the year ranked outside the top 300.