Stefanos Tsitsipas’ former partner has recently shared her response to Naomi Osaka’s reaction to her earlier statement, which highlighted the motivational grunting Osaka did during her Australian Open second-round match against Sorana Cîrstea.
She had shared her thoughts on the on-court grunting that players often engage in during matches to boost themselves.
Stefanos Tsitsipas’ Ex-Girlfriend Clears the Air After Receiving Naomi Osaka’s Reaction
Tsitsipas’ former partner, who hosts the “What’s the Call?” podcast with Andrea, has shared her thoughts on Osaka’s grunting, which she displayed during her second-round match against Cîrstea, who later clinched the Transylvania Open powered by Kaufland after defeating Emma Raducanu.
During their earlier podcast episode, Theodora Petalas had highlighted that grunting in a match isn’t a simple right or wrong, further expressing, “I don’t think it’s black and white. And like, I do find actually, I find it quite annoying when players like amp themselves up like in a bit of a performative way, almost, I don’t know, like, could it be called gamesmanship? Maybe.”
She further added, expressing how grunting feels showy and attention-seeking rather than athletic, “Even though this doesn’t happen during the point, but when players like put their finger to their ear and they’re like, it just aches me out, I’m like, what are you doing?”
After which, Osaka had mentioned through her Instagram thread, reacting, “I laugh when people that don’t know anything about tennis start a podcast about tennis. What do you mean grunting is unsportsmanlike, and it gives you the ick? Watch a different sport lol.” She later shared the same message through her Instagram story, adding the caption, “Cause who gave them a microphone? Take it awayyyуууу.”
However, after receiving the Japanese star’s comments on their discussion of her grunting during her match, Petalas and Andrea, in their recent episode, cleared the air, stating that their intention was not to criticize Osaka’s on-court behaviour but to discuss it casually, as they are not experts in the sport.
Petalas expressed, “Burn. I don’t think what we said was that bad. Let it be known that we never claim to be technical tennis experts. We’re just fans who love the sport. We want to talk about it in a fun, casual way. Everyone’s entitled to their opinions. And that was ours,” Andrea also added, “All we wanted to do was raise it as a point of discussion. We’re defending her too.”
However, the controversial aspect of grunting could be assessed on a case-by-case basis, and rule violations are allowed in matches because they help players balance their core and produce powerful plays. It also has physiological, psychological, and performance benefits, among others.
