Naomi Osaka has been a darling of the sports world since she emerged two years ago as one of tennis' biggest stars.
Her fun relationship with tennis legend Serena Williams has made people love both stars even more, and Osaka's fans were overjoyed on Wednesday when she posted a picture of her and Williams at a charity tennis match in Melbourne, Australia.
me and my mom lol. pic.twitter.com/HvCoPpgShm
— NaomiOsaka大坂なおみ (@naomiosaka) January 15, 2020
The young tennis superstar posted dozens of photos and videos of her and other contemporary tennis greats at the event, including emerging teenager Coco Gauff.
yes I was that person. pic.twitter.com/dISOBOtt2g
— NaomiOsaka大坂なおみ (@naomiosaka) January 15, 2020
All of her posts on Twitter and Instagram racked up hundreds of thousands of likes, views and shares thanks to her comical captions and expressions.
#RallyForRelief ???? pic.twitter.com/8BzTwZXadS
— NaomiOsaka大坂なおみ (@naomiosaka) January 15, 2020
Unfortunately, the internet decided to rain on Osaka's parade, filling the comment section under both her posts on Instagram and Twitter with hateful, negative comments about her looks and choice of words.
I can understand you admire Serena from an athletic standpoint but personally I feel that you are presently in a better position on a personal path compared to the route that she has taken with some of her actions and statements. She should only be an athletic inspiration.
— Adribahamashiakh Rasheed Yehezke'l Ben-Clyde (@adosbayou) January 15, 2020
I don't like her calling Serena her mom. It signifies that Serena is some old woman.
— Carolyn Walker (@CarolynW601) January 15, 2020
You saying Serena is old!! :p
— Mr Sarcasm (@bramhabs98) January 15, 2020
I think this is disrespectful to Serena. Yes Serena is much older than Naomi but girl have some class and respect! Serena is a legend and I think your comment is passive aggressive and mean spirited. Serena is NOT your mom she is your competition.
— OrvilleLloydDouglas????????????️???? (@OrvilleLloyd) January 15, 2020
Hundreds of people made negative comments about both Osaka and Williams, criticizing their looks and slamming Osaka for jokingly referring to Williams as her "mom."
Osaka had no choice but to respond to the negativity, slamming people for taking a fun caption way too seriously. Although she did not respond on Twitter, she did take some time to answer the haters on Instagram.
“I literally would not be here without her. If that’s not some definition of mom idk what is. But sure, get offended by my internet slang I guess," Osaka responded.
Osaka, Gauff and Williams often face a barrage of online hatred because of their overwhelming talent and domination of the largely white tennis fan base.
Thankfully, the haters couldn't stop Osaka, Williams and other tennis stars from raising an astounding $5 million for relief efforts related to the wildfires that devastated Australia over the past few weeks.
Most of the tennis world is in Australia right now preparing for the Australia Open, which starts next week.
