Stefanos Tsitsipas jokes about why Naomi Osaka won the Australian Open, says “it was all because of the Greek food”

After her semifinal win over Serena Williams eventually month’s Australian Open, Naomi Osaka revealed she had switched from consuming Japanese delicacies to Greek meals the day prior to this. That, she claimed, was partly impressed by Stefanos Tsitsipas‘ comeback win over Rafael Nadal within the males’s quarterfinals.

Naomi Osaka went on to beat Jennifer Brady within the closing two days later, for the fourth Slam title of her profession. And now, Stefanos Tsitsipas has jokingly credited Osaka consumption of souvlaki (a popular Greek dish) as the rationale for her Australian Open triumph.

Tsitsipas made the comments on Friday on the ABN AMRO World Tennis Rotterdam, the place he’s by way of to the semifinals. The Greek defeated Karen Khachanov in a good three-setter to arrange a conflict in opposition to one other Russian – Andrey Rublev – for a spot within the closing.

“I additionally prefer to suppose that she gained the Australian Open on account of souvlaki that she ate the opposite day,” Tsitsipas responded with a smile when requested about Naomi Osaka’s newest Main title. “Not the opposite day, when she was taking part in the Australian Open. She had Greek meals apparently, and I’ll simply inform her one factor: I believe it was all due to Greek meals.”

Good to see girls’s tennis be taken over by such an inspiring and charming participant like Naomi Osaka: Stefanos Tsitsipas

Stefanos Tsitsipas and Naomi Osaka share a pleasant equation off the court docket.

The 2 held a joint Instagram Live session for his or her followers throughout final yr’s COVID-enforced lockdown. Tsitsipas had additionally earlier spoken about how he was impressed by Osaka to learn about the Black Lives Matter movement throughout her sensational 2020 US Open run.

The Greek, who will rise to No. 5 in the ATP rankings next week, claimed on Friday that he was pleased with Osaka’s achievements on and off the court docket.

“I’m very pleased with her,” Stefanos Tsitsipas mentioned. “We keep up a correspondence, we speak every now and then. She’s an important human being, even larger on the tennis court docket, has been exhibiting unbelievable tennis, a lot of the Slams that’s the place she shines.”

Stefanos Tsitsipas additional expressed his delight at seeing somebody as ‘inspiring’ and ‘charming’ as Naomi Osaka turn into the brand new face of girls’s tennis.

“I am actually completely satisfied for Naomi Osaka, she’s doing nice, it’s very nice to see girls’s tennis be taken over by such an inspiring, such an enthralling participant like her,” Tsitsipas went on. “She has every thing. She has the appeal, she has the character, the sport, so it’s actually good for the sport to have gamers like her.”