After the Toronto tournament organizers handed Osaka a positivity card from a fan, Osaka had an interesting reaction. “I love you so much. You’re my favorite tennis player!” read the positive message she got.
As the reception was filmed, Osaka reacted. “Thank you! Whenever people tell me I’m their favorite player, it’s like the most flattering thing ever because there are so many other players,” said the Japanese player.
Other stars, like Venus Williams, Iga Swiatek, Bianca Andreescu, and Emma Raducanu also received positivity cards, as shown in the video below.
“How about a bit of positivity to brighten your day? We had fans fill out Positivity Postcards and gave them to WTA stars to read at #NBO22 – and their reactions will warm your heart,” the tournament organizers captioned the video above.
Osaka retired from Toronto
Four-time Grand Slam winner Naomi Osaka admitted that her performance in Toronto’s opening round was affected from the outset by a back problem. Due to a back ailment, Osaka was forced to end her first-round match in Toronto on Tuesday.
When Osaka came to the net and announced she couldn’t continue, Kaia Kanepi had a 7-6 (3) 3-0 advantage. Osaka tried her hardest to play through the injury, but she ultimately had to retire. Osaka was hurt, but she didn’t want to detract from Kanepi’s achievement as she gave the Estonian her congratulations for a job well done.
“I felt my back from the start of the match, and despite trying my best to push through it, I just wasn’t able to today,” Osaka said. “I’d like to pay credit to Kaia for playing well and want to wish her all the best for the rest of the tournament”.