Osaka, Siniakova cheer on Townsend from player's box
Naomi Osaka and Katerina Siniakova won their first-round Wimbledon matches on Monday, and they returned to the All England Club on Tuesday to show love and support to their close friend.
Both players cheered on Taylor Townsend from her player's box during her 6-1, 2-6, 6-3 loss to Iga Swiatek on Center Court on Tuesday.
It's not totally uncommon to see players in each other's boxes, but it was a slight surprise considering it's early in a Grand Slam, and both Osaka and Siniakova are still in the field.
That speaks to the incredible bond that Townsend has formed with Osaka and Siniakova on the WTA Tour Driven by Mercedes-Benz.
After last year's WTA Finals, Osaka and Townsend vacationed together in the Caribbean and went viral on TikTok with a remix video, dancing on a yacht to a mashup of Nicki Minaj’s 2012 song "Beez in the Trap" and 4 Non Blondes’ 1993 hit "What's Up?".
As for Siniakova, she and Townsend have emerged as one of the most successful doubles teams on the WTA Tour over the last two years. They've won seven doubles titles as a pairing, including three Grand Slams and four WTA 1000s. So far this year, they've hoisted the trophies at Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid and Roland Garros.
They won Wimbledon together in 2024, and are teaming again this week as the top seed in the draw. They'll open their tournament on Thursday against Clara Tauson and Chan Hao-ching.
"I have really good relationships with both of them," Townsend said after the match. "They wanted to come support me, and I wouldn't have given the tickets to anyone else. Both Kat and Naomi arranged their schedules to be able to come to the match.
"...It means a lot. I just texted one of my friends and I was like, I feel really blessed being able to look up to my box, and being able to see players, competitors and people that I genuinely love and care about supporting me. I felt really supported, and I think that's really cool."
Osaka, seeded 14th, will play World No. 225 Anastasia Gasanova in the second round on Wednesday. Siniakova, seeded 32nd, will take on Nikola Bartunkova.