Ever since making a comeback to tennis after becoming a mother, Naomi Osaka has been a shadow of her peak time in the sport. A four-time Grand Slam champion, the Japanese star has struggled to get her feet going this season. Osaka has been hit with an inconsistent run of form and hasn’t been able to get past the quarterfinal stage. As a result, her fans have been left frustrated and emotions flew after her recent defeat in Berlin.

Earlier today, Osaka went down fighting against Qinwen Zheng of China in the WTA 500 tournament in Berlin for the second time this year. The two players have had a heated past and fans remembered this fact while slamming Osaka’s loss.

What is the common link between Naomi Osaka and Qinwen Zheng?

Back in 2023, as Osaka was preparing to make a comeback to tennis, Zheng’s then-coach, Wim Fissette ended his partnership with Zheng abruptly to join Osaka’s team. It was a sour ending to their successful partnership as Zheng became one of the top players on the tour.

The Chinese star got to know about this after her loss against Aryna Sabalenka at the 2023 US Open. Recalling the incident, she said, “During the US Open I knew he had contact with the team of Osaka. Right after the match, he said to me that he felt like he had no connection with me. He never said that to me before. Right after I was defeated, he said that to me.”

As a result, Zheng was fired up when she took on Osaka today. It showed in her performance as the Chinese star got the better of Osaka and fans recollected their heated rivalry while slamming Osaka’s recent performances.

Naomi Osaka’s defeat doesn’t go down well with the fans

The Japanese star’s fans have been patient as Osaka has struggled for form. They have hoped that she gets back to her best form soon, which saw her win four major titles in the past but is severely lacking in 2024. As a result, fans lost their patience and made some brutal comments after Osaka’s loss.

One of the fans took a sarcastic jibe at Osaka and said, “Good win. Probably extra fulfilling since Osaka took back Zheng’s coach.” Indeed, it was a satisfying victory for Zheng as she got the bragging rights over Osaka and her coach, Wim Fissette. Meanwhile, it wasn’t Osaka’s first defeat of the season against Zheng. The Chinese star got the better of Osaka at the Italian Open in straight sets and another fan pointed out this defeat while posing a grim question. The comment read, “Beat you on clay and now on grass, what’s wrong with you Naomi.”

Subsequently, one Twitter user felt that Osaka’s domination of the WTA was history and it might not be repeated again. The fan said, “Osaka era is end… sad.” Talking from the point of view of Zheng, it was another dominating performance from her and one fan felt that she owned Osaka in their encounter. Lastly, one fan was hopeful despite the recent dip in Osaka’s form, saying, “Osaka keeps getting defeated, when is she going to go deep into tournaments and hopefully, win as she use to -:))”

It is high time for Naomi Osaka to get back to winning ways. If things continue this way, retirement might be looming for her in the coming years as failure to win tournaments might take a toll on her.