A heckler brought tennis superstar Naomi Osaka to tears during a match at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, Calif. on Saturday, according to ESPN.
“Naomi, you suck,” a woman in the audience said during her second-round match against Veronika Kudermetova.
According to ESPN, Osaka, who was obviously furious, halted the match and requested the chair umpire if the heckler could be removed from the competition and if she could speak to the crowd. The requests were both turned down.
After losing the match, Osaka addressed the fans, mentioning the heckling Venus and Serena Williams experienced in the Indian Wells, California Open.
“To be honest, I’ve gotten heckled before, it didn’t really bother me,” an emotional Osaka told the crowd. “But [being] heckled here, I watched a video of Venus and Serena getting heckled here, and if you’ve never watched it, you should watch it. I don’t know why, but it went into my head, and it got replayed a lot. I’m trying not to cry.”
During Serena’s last match at the 2001 Indian Wells tournament, supporters booed Venus and her father, Richard, since some fans suspected their father of influencing events after Venus withdrew out due to injury.
Even after Serena defeated Kim Clijsters for the title, the fans continued to jeer her throughout the match. According to ESPN, both Williams sisters boycotted the event until 2015 and 2016, respectively.
Last year, Osaka, a four-time grand slam winner, made headlines for taking time off from tennis to work on her mental health.
Osaka withdrew from the French and Wimbledon Opens before announcing an extended hiatus following her third-round defeat at the US Open last September, according to ESPN.
Osaka, who has used her profile to advocate for social justice and police reform, made her comeback to the circuit in January with a performance at the Australian Open.