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Tennis stars Naomi Osaka and Sorana Cirstea had a tiff at the end of their Australian Open match on Thursday.
Osaka brought Cirstea’s final Aussie Open match to a bitter end when she defeated the Romanian player 6-3, 4-6, 6-2. Cirstea had words for Osaka as she greeted her at the net for the post-match handshake.
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Naomi Osaka, right, of Japan talks with Sorana Cirstea, left, of Romania following their second round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
She slapped Osaka’s hand and then marched toward the umpire. Osaka asked, “What was that for?”
Cirstea didn’t appear to enjoy Osaka trying to hype herself up during the match.
“Apparently a lot of ‘C’mons’ that she was angry about but whatever,” Osaka said in the interview after the match. “I mean, I tried to play well, I tried my best. She’s a great player — I think this was her last Australian Open so, OK, sorry she was mad about it.”
Osaka added that Cirstea could have asked her to stop.
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Naomi Osaka of Japan plays a forehand return to Sorana Cirstea of Romania during their second round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Osaka entered the tournament as the No. 16 seed. She’s won the Australian Open twice in her career but hasn’t made it past the third round since 2021. She is set for a third-round matchup against Maddison Inglis on Friday.
Cirstea announced in December that the 2026 season would be her final run in professional tennis. She only made it as far as the fourth round at the Australian Open.
Naomi Osaka of Japan walks onto court for her second round match against Sorana Cirstea of Romaniaat the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Jan. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
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She has three career singles titles and no Grand Slam titles.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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