Aussie tennis star Destanee Aiava has appeared to accuse fans of racism for mistaking her for four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka at the Australian Open.
The 24-year-old former junior prodigy from Melbourne has become one of the great stories from the tournament this year after she achieved her first Grand Slam win on Monday night.
Aiava advanced with her first win at Melbourne Park on her sixth attempt, beating Belgium's Greet Minnen 5-7 7-5 7-6 (10-5).
She trailed 5-2 in the second set but rallied and rattled off five straight games, saving two match points, to send the match to a decider.
Social media has lit up with posts about the local talent – with more than a few fans admitting to mistaking her for tennis champion Naomi Osaka.
'Bruh I thought that was Naomi,' replied another.
Aiava – who is of Samoan descent – took to X on Tuesday night to comment on the matter, writing: 'why are people commenting and mistaking me for Naomi Osaka (i love her don't come for me) like i'm genuinely confused why multiple people are getting me mixed up with her ???????????'
A few of Aiava's followers thought she had more than a passing resemblance to the Japanese star.
'Have to admit that from a distance, you two look like the same in term of body shape,' replied one user.
'I saw that on IG and I was confused as well…' said a second.
'You're doing great Naomi,' joked a third.
Fans mistaking Aiava for Osaka – who is of Japanese and Haitian descent – recalls complaints from stars like African-American player Taylor Townsend, who said she had been confused with 'all' other black women on the tour in 2020.
'Everybody sees a black person and they assume that it's Venus or Serena [Williams] or Sloane [Stephens],' Taylor said.
'I've been literally all of them down the list except for myself.'
Aiva's second-round opponent is tough American 10th seed Danielle Collins, who was beaten by Ash Barty in the 2022 final.
'I'm just super happy to get through and finally win a first round of singles in a grand slam, especially at my home slam,' Aiava said.
'It was really nice and special. The crowd got me through. I felt it from the very first point. Everyone was so loud [and] they gave me the energy that I needed to get through that match, especially when I was down and had match points against me.'
The stunning feat is even more special for those who know how close Aiava came to ending her life almost three years ago.
'The night of Easter Sunday (17th April) I was going to throw myself off a bridge onto the M1, 3 people drove by, dragged me off the rails and drove me home,' she wrote in a Instagram post in 2022.
'I did not want to make it to my 22nd birthday, but I know my family and friends would be happy to know I'm alive on this day that's meant to be special.
'Sometimes people you come across in life can make you feel that you're unworthy of being loved, but at the end of the day I've learnt – "God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength but with your testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it".'
Aiava is now in a far better place thanks to the support of family and friends – and the incredible intervention of three strangers who helped talk her down from the bridge in Melbourne.
Speaking after her win on Monday, Aiava said confidence has sometimes been an issue in the past.
'I can sometimes get into a really bad head space and think that I was never going to win a first-round match or I wouldn't ever qualify, before I did at the US Open (in 2024),' she said.
'But once I actually do those things and the belief comes with it, then just the more situations I'm in like this, it definitely gives me more confidence.'