Osaka battles rules again after dress demands disrupt

Naomi Osaka returned to the French Open spotlight for a third-round match against Iva Jovic, arriving in a billowing, custom Nike design before removing parts of the outfit on court—an issue she’s repeatedly refused to back down on, despite criticism from oppo

Naomi Osaka walked on to Court with a billowing dress, detachable frills catching the light as the French Open’s morning crowd greeted her. It was the kind of entrance that stops people mid-conversation. It was also the kind that comes with consequences.

On Saturday morning. Osaka arrived for her third-round clash against Iva Jovic wearing an eye-catching. custom-made Nike outfit that has been likened to the Eiffel Tower. She needed to remove it on court—an interruption she has become accustomed to—before the match got underway. Fans clapped as she took to the court, and again when she stripped away the dress attachments.

The outfit itself was designed to look ceremonial. Osaka’s sequined and glittery gold ensemble included a ceremonial black skirt and a sleeveless beaded bodice. She wore the bodice while walking out, then took off the latter two items before play began.

To some, it was flair in the fashion capital of the sport’s biggest stage. To others, it was needless drama. One viewer on X branded the costume “just so stupid,” adding to the divide that has followed Osaka around Roland Garros.

That tension is not new. Days earlier. her beaten first-round opponent Laura Siegemund had labelled Osaka “problematic” after she turned up in an Eiffel Tower-inspired outfit. Siegemund said she had no issue with the actual design or the result. but was frustrated by the time and the way rules appeared to be enforced. Speaking to TNT Sports. Siegemund said: “I couldn’t care less.” She added: “I come here to play tennis. not to put on a fashion show. And if others want to put on a fashion show, then they should go ahead and do it. That’s totally fine with me.”.

She then pointed to the contrast she felt between Osaka’s changing time and the strictness players are monitored for during matches. “I find something else problematic,” Siegemund said. “In our sport, at every tournament they count every second, right up until you’ve unpacked your water bottle. But she can have a minute-and-a-half to change. I have a problem with that. because these rules simply exist and they are what they are – every second is now being watched so closely for us.”.

Siegemund also argued that the moment matters for everyone, not just the biggest names. “And I also think that with performances like these, every second should be accounted for,” she said. “That’s the only thing regarding the rules that I don’t think is OK and where. once again. bigger names are treated differently.”.

Osaka’s response to the criticism has been consistent: she sees her walk-ons as part of the spectacle. not a distraction from the sport—and she insists she does not view the change itself as a major issue. After her match, she described the look as deliberate. “It’s very couture,” Osaka said. “You know the Eiffel Tower at night when it’s sparkly. I kind of think I look like that a little bit.”.

She said she could understand why people might see stress where she does not. “I don’t really feel like it’s too much of a big deal to do that and then play after [in terms of making a fashion statement and then playing tennis]. I could see where people would think I feel a little stressed or whatever. I think that’s the thing about it.”.

Osaka added that her only real concern was practical: whether the glitter could be too reflective in the sun. “When I first saw it. I felt like I look like the Eiffel Tower at night-time when it’s bright. ” she continued. “Then I actually got a little worried because when the sun hits the dress. it reflects a lot. so I was a little scared the umpire was going to kick me off the court.”.

When the moment arrived, she had alternatives ready. Osaka said she had “two back-up, normal dresses” and that “thankfully I didn’t have to wear them.”

The bigger story, though, is what happens around the rules and the patience expected at matches like this. Osaka insists she is not trying to turn tennis into a fashion show; her opponents argue the show—and the exemptions—come at the expense of consistency. In the middle of that clash of priorities. she keeps arriving in outfits designed to be seen. even if they have to be taken off before the points start.

For this French Open third round, the sequence was simple: the billowing dress drew applause, the attachments came off on court, and play moved on—leaving behind the same question that has followed Osaka through Roland Garros: what is allowed to be spectacle, and what is still supposed to be fair.

Naomi Osaka French Open Roland Garros Iva Jovic Laura Siegemund TNT Sports Nike outfit Eiffel Tower-inspired dress tennis fashion controversy