Insider Podcast: 2018 US Open Final Preview

NEW YORK, New York - The WTA Insider Podcast previews the 2018 US Open final between 23-time major champion Serena Williams and 20-year-old Naomi Osaka

Courtney Nguyen is joined by Ava Wallace, reporter for The Washington Post, and Akatsuki Uchida, a freelance reporter for Japan's Smash Magazine, to dissect what's at stake for Serena and Osaka in Saturday's final. They also delve into the unique nature of both competitors and how, in their own way, both women have a gravitational pull that pulls both fans and reporters into their orbit. 

Uchida on Osaka:

"I am very excited. Writing about Naomi is always fresh for me even though I have been in this business for a long time and I have known her for four years already. Still, every time I talk to her I can discover something from her. I never get tired of writing about her. This time is kind of a perfect story. She always said if she wins any Slams she wants the US Open to be the first one. She has been dreaming of playing Serena in the final of a Slam at the US Open. And she grew up on Long Island.

"So if I were a scriptwriter for a movie and I write that kind of story, maybe my boss would say no, it's impossible, It's too silly. But it's happening." 

Wallace on Serena:

"There is no single female athlete who has her level of what she's accomplished in her career and is as open as she is about pretty much about everything. She wasn't always open. She did her accomplishing part first. She paid her dues. She played a lot of tennis tournaments, she took a lot of racist stuff, she took a lot of sexist stuff, she's made her money, she has her sponsorships, she's comfortable now. So now we get the part where she's open and she's still actively playing.

"A lot of athletes get to the point where they're comfortable speaking out and they're too old to be in their sport nowadays. Serena, because of her career longevity still has that platform. We still want to hear her and we want to watch her play. I can't think of anybody who has as much power as she does from that point of view." 

Wallace on Serena: 

"It's really hard to convey how big of a deal [winning No.24] is because the thing that rolls off the tongue for me is that she's trying to tie the all-time record set by Margaret Court. We've said it so many times, I don't know if it's lost its meaning. The difficult thing is that she's the first person trying to do what she's doing. There's no one who's done what she's done so there's no comparison point.

"When you say 'since Margaret Court' for most people that doesn't mean that much. The number is a number that's close to Roger and Rafa, so the number doesn't seem that big anymore. So it's really hard to convey how big of a deal it is because we're all so used to it. Serena is trying to build that frame of reference. She's trying to be the frame."

Wallace on Osaka: 

"She's different. She's really, really different, and that is the best thing in the world, especially if you cover a bunch of different sports like I do and everybody starts to sound the same, from WNBA to college football. Naomi Osaka

Uchida on Osaka:

"Some of my friends texted me that Naomi is great. These friends are people who are normally not interested in tennis at all. That is a sign that the news is getting bigger. Today Kei Nishikori lost, so I think more pressure and interest comes to her after Kei lost. So now I think there is expectation for her."

Listen to the full discussion in the newest episode of the WTA Insider Podcast below: