Despite being ready to concede her semifinal match at the Western & Southern Open, as a way of making a stand against racial injustice, Naomi Osaka was persuaded by the WTA and USTA to compete and now she’s into her first final of the season where she’ll face fellow two-time Grand Slam champion and former world No.1 Victoria Azarenka.
In support of the Black Lives Matter movement, Osaka was wearing a black T-shirt with a fist and the slogan down the front as she stepped on the court for her Cincinnati semifinal against last week’s Prague runner-up Elise Mertens.