Japan’s Naomi Osaka, 23, left many netizens puzzled during her acceptance speech at the Australia Open. The athlete went on to praise her rival Jennifer Brady, 25, but because of one awkward moment, it came across as though she might have been trolling her opponent.
At the beginning of her speech, Osaka turned to Brady and asked, “Do you like to be called Jenny or Jennifer?”
“Jenny,” the latter answered clearly.
Osaka then said: “Firstly, I want to congratulate Jennifer.”
Osaka’s gaffe instantly went viral and divided the Twitter crowd. While some users said that this must have been a slip of the tongue due to being nervous, others argued that the Australian Open winner called Brady by her full name deliberately.
Osaka defeated the US’ Brady in the Australian Open final 6-4, 6-3 in 77 minutes. Her victory marks the second time the Japanese national has won the tournament.
The annual Australian Open is the first part of this year’s four Grand Slam events. Naomi Osaka’s game on Saturday has as well brought her fourth Grand Slam win.