Rafael Nadal and Daniil Medvedev are the latest tennis stars to weigh in on Naomi Osaka’s heckling incident, which overshadowed the Japanese star’s third-round tie at Indian Wells last week.
The 24-year-old was reduced to tears after a member of the crowd shouted “Naomi you suck” early in her match against Veronika Kudermetova.
After engaging in discussion with the chair umpire about the incident, Osaka was visibly upset by the heckling and quickly fell away in the match.
Kudermetova eventually wrapped up the contest 6-0 6-4, before Osaka addressed the crowd to discuss the incident.
"To be honest, I’ve gotten heckled before, like it didn’t really bother me,” she admitted. “But heckled here [Indian Wells], I’ve watched a video of Venus and Serena get heckled here and if you’ve never watched it, you should watch it.
"And I don’t know why but it went into my head and it got replayed a lot. I’m trying not to cry. But I just wanted to say thank you and congratulations [to Kudermetova]. Yeah, just thank you."
The incident concerning the Williams sisters dates back to 2001, when Serena, Venus and their father Richard were all heavily booed during Serena’s final. This led both sisters to boycott the event for the next 14 years.
Former Britsh number one Andy Murray condemned the heckling against Osaka but did stress that athletes need to be prepared for it to happen.
Now, Nadal and Medvedev have offered their thoughts, with both appearing to agree with the three-time major winner.
“In the real world, that happens, you know? I feel very sorry for her," said Nadal after his win over Britain’s Dan Evans.
"We are very lucky people that we're able to enjoy amazing experiences because we are tennis players. Even if is terrible to hear, we need to be prepared for that, no?"
Nadal also wished Osaka well and recognised that the four-time Slam champion has suffered a lot with mental health issues of late.
"I understand that probably Naomi suffered a lot with these kind of issues that she has, mental [health] issues. The only thing that I wish her is recovering well from that and wish her all the very best."
Meanwhile, Medvedev, who had multiple run-ins with the crowd during the Australian Open final against Nadal earlier this year, said he felt for Osaka based on his own experiences with heckling.
"It’s tough for everybody because I can feel for Naomi, I mean I felt not great in Australia.
"I can feel the [for] fans that [are] maybe gonna say ‘what the hell, they’re getting millions, they should be ready for everything’.
"[But at] the same time we are humans, we all make mistakes, good decisions. Sometimes we feel bad, sometimes we feel good. So basically I can understand that Naomi didn’t feel that great when she heard it and I can completely understand her feelings."
Medvedev was knocked out of Indian Wells in the round of 32 to Gael Monfils. Nadal, however, is now 17-0 this year and will play Nick Kyrgios in the quarter-finals on Thursday.