At this point, any special outfit Naomi Osaka wears turns into a controversy. This was highlighted by the criticism she received for arriving in a fur-trimmed, patchwork cloak for her fourth-round match against Elena Rybakina. Ultimately, Osaka had to address the flak with the same fury with which it was aimed at her.

“You know… idgaf if you don’t like me. I don’t mind being the first to do something and getting trashed for it,” Osaka wrote in a Threads post on September 8, 2026.

“This happened when I talked about mental health and for some reason it’s happening with my clothes lol. I’m literally Haitian it’s in my blood to be this way, as long as the people after me have an easier path it’s worth it.”

The outfit in question was designed by the streetwear label known as KidSuper based in Brooklyn. It also further builds on the player’s collaboration with celebrity stylist Law Roach.

Earlier, at her first-round match against Anastasia Zakharova, Osaka showed up to the court sporting an Allen Iverson-inspired outfit. It featured a white tulle skirt and a gray hooded robe.

For the next round, Osaka stepped onto the court dressed by Thom Browne, in a loose-fitting white jacket stitched with a pair of crossed tennis rackets across the front. By round three, the four-time major winner turned to Monse for a piece that blurred the line between blazer and hoodie. She wore an oversized gray top that borrowed from both office wear and gym wear, paired with soft, flowing gray fleece trousers.

Her outfits, however, were ridiculed by spectators for being “extra”, and many complained that Naomi Osaka was treating the Grand Slam like a fashion runway. And the backlash clearly took the player all the way back to the 2021 French Open.

Osaka withdrew from the 2021 French Open, one day after being fined $15,000 for skipping her post-match press conference. She had earlier said that she would not fulfill media obligations during the tournament, arguing that mandatory press conferences disregard athletes’ mental health. Osaka held to that position after her first-round win over Patricia Maria Tig, prompting the fine and a joint warning from all four Grand Slam tournaments that continued refusal could lead to default from the event.

Announcing her withdrawal the next day, Osaka revealed she had experienced long bouts of depression since winning the 2018 US Open, and acknowledged that her timing and messaging could have been clearer.

As a result, the backlash intensified. The Telegraph’s Oliver Brown called her exit “Diva behavior at its worst”. Meanwhile, other online spectators thrashed her for ignoring her media duties altogether. Now, the same player is facing backlash over something as personal as her clothing decisions.

Naomi Osaka has previously stated that she prefers to express herself through fashion. “I want to do well, and I want to show you guys some more outfits… It’s my tribute to Iverson,” she’d said about her round 1 outfit. “I love expressing myself through clothes. I don’t like talking that much,” she added later.

The statement only builds on what Osaka has always maintained. She loves to express herself, and yet, the criticism she’s dealt with over the years has worn her down to the point that she doesn’t enjoy talking all that much. However, her recent statement only goes to highlight her perseverance in the face of it all.