'You have to ask a men's player' - Naomi Osaka responds to Novak Djokovic questions at Australian Open
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Published 17/01/2022 at 11:55 GMT
"I mean, to be completely honest, it didn't really affect me," Naomi Osaka said of the furore surrounding Novak Djokovic and his deportation in Melbourne. "I saw that it affected the men's draw a little bit, so you might have to ask a men's player. For me, my goal, like even before this whole situation, is to just focus on myself more, what I need to do to become better."
'You have to ask a men's draw player' - Osaka responds to Djokovic question
Naomi Osaka found herself in the position of having to respond to further questions about Novak Djokovic after her first-round win over Camila Osorio at the Australian Open.
The defending champion wasted little time in overcoming her Colombian opponent, who was making her main draw debut in Melbourne, wrapping up the contest in 68 minutes.
Osaka was surprised to be asked to again share her thoughts on Djokovic's deportation in her post-match press conference, along with questions about the WTA's handling of the situation involving Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai.
"I mean, to be completely honest, it didn't really affect me," Osaka said of the furore surrounding Djokovic in Melbourne.
"I saw that it affected the men's draw a little bit, so you might have to ask a men's player.
"For me, my goal, like even before this whole situation, is to just focus on myself more, what I need to do to become better.
"I wasn't really, like, I guess looking at the news too often."
Earlier, in her on-court interview, Osaka reflected on returning to Rod Laver Arena as the reigning champion.
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"It always feels special for me to come back here," the two-time Australian Open winner said.
"I played the warm-up tournament before the Grand Slam and I have a lot of really good memories here. It feels really nice to start the year in this tournament.
"I think I played really well in the circumstances. I didn't really have any information on my opponent but I thought she played amazingly. She was fighting for every point and I think that was really good quality.
"I'm sure we're going to see her on this court pretty frequently. Overall I'm just really happy to be here.
"I really like hot conditions but I feel like every time I come here everyone is warm and welcoming. The crowd are all really nice so I'm sure that has an effect on me."
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