Naomi Osaka Facing Pressure To Retire After ‘Classless’ Decision originally appeared on The Spun.
Tennis fans have supported Naomi Osaka throughout her career. On Thursday night, however, they called her out for being a “sore loser.”
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Osaka reached the National Bank Open final this week, taking down seeded players such as Elina Svitolina and Clara Tauson. Standing in her way of a title was 18-year-old Victoria Mboko. Despite winning the opening set against the Canadian teenager, Osaka fell apart in the second set and was never able to shake off her nerves by the time the deciding set arrived.
After dropping the National Bank Open final, Osaka was supposed to deliver a speech in front of the fans. She decided to cut it short though because she was frustrated with her performance. While that has happened before, fans thought she’d congratulate Mboko on the victory.
Unfortunately, Osaka didn’t do that.
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“I don’t really wanna take up too much time. I’ll just say thank you to everyone,” Osaka said. “Thank you to my team, the ball kids, organizers and volunteers. I hope you guys had a good night.”
Aug 7, 2025; Montreal, QC, Canada; Runner up Naomi Osaka (JPN) adresses the crowd after her loss against Victoria Mboko (CAN) at IGA Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn ImagesDavid Kirouac-Imagn Images.
Tennis fans thought Osaka showed a lack of sportsmanship Thursday night. Some are willing to forgive her, but others believe it’s time for her to simply walk away from the sport.
“I have no time for Naomi Osaka acting like this,” one person wrote on X. “Pull yourself together, congratulate that girl, retire, and spend time with your daughter. Enough.”
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“The whole world watched you Naomi Osaka. Your poor sportsmanship in loss. Your tears. A 4 time major winner who cannot lose with grace. Please retire. Nobody likes you now. Nobody will cheer for you after this,” a fan commented.
“It’s time for Naomi Osaka to retire,” another fan declared. “Every time she loses she’s crying & making excuses.”
“Naomi Osaka has the talent, no doubt…but I think her best option is to retire, she had a good run,” a social media user wrote.
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“Naomi Osaka was not graceful in defeat. Her speech was classless,” another social media user said.
As of now, it doesn’t sound like Osaka will take a break – and frankly, she shouldn’t. We all saw in Montreal how lethal she can be on the court.
Osaka is set to be seeded at the US Open later this summer. She has already won this Grand Slam twice in her career, so we can’t rule out a run in New York.
Naomi Osaka Facing Pressure To Retire After ‘Classless’ Decision first appeared on The Spun on Aug 8, 2025
This story was originally reported by The Spun on Aug 8, 2025, where it first appeared.