Naomi Osaka continued her tennis triumphs after winning her second Australian Open title and fourth Grand Slam on Saturday, Feb. 20. Osaka’s latest win advances her to the No. 2 spot of the WTA’s ranking of women’s tennis players. She now trails Australian player Ashleigh Barty for the top spot.
Despite her accomplishments, her boyfriend of two years, rapper Cordae, recently told GQ that he had no idea who Osaka was when they first went out. The two currently are the cover story of GQ’s “Modern Love Issue.”
“It’s not my sport. If you asked me about tennis, before being immersed in it because of Naomi, I could only give you Venus and Serena Williams, you know? Because they’re just a part of the culture,” Cordae said.
Corde also explained that Osaka has opened his world to new experiences since they began dating.
“I don’t know if I ever told Naomi this or not, but I felt really out of place during the 2019 U.S. Open. Like, that was my first time being in an environment like that in my entire life. My elementary school, middle school, high school was 99.9 percent Black. Kids who look like me. It just felt really weird for me being in that space. That was my first tennis match ever,” Cordae added.
The tennis phenom also gushed over her beau as she reminisced with GQ about their first date. “I just remember seeing that there were so many people who wanted to take a picture with him,” Osaka commented. “And I just thought it was really cool how friendly and welcoming he was with everyone.”
The young couple played a 30-question game with GQ that you can view on the following page.
