Why Naomi Osaka and Taylor Townsend's dinner party 'caused a stir'

Naomi Osaka and Taylor Townsend have become friends in recent years. (Getty Images: Robert Prange)

Naomi Osaka and Taylor Townsend are piling up wins on the court at the French Open.

Their success comes after drawing attention off the court for organising a dinner for black players before the tournament started.

"It caused a bit of a stir, which I thought was pretty funny because for so long we have been the ones that [are] the minority in a sport where we kind of stick out," Townsend said.

"And now coming together all of a sudden seems like a problem."

While Townsend said the reaction from her Instagram post about the evening was "mostly positive", she said she was aware of the criticism online.

It all prompted Townsend to quote a lyric from the rapper Finesse2tymes: "He said, 'It's cool when they do it; it's a problem when I do it.'"

Keeping in the rap theme, Townsend quoted Tupac Shakur in her post about the evening: "Some say the blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice; I say the darker the flesh, then the deeper the roots."

Her caption also thanked Osaka for co-hosting a "dinner that was much bigger than us".

"This was not only good for the culture, it was great for the soul #firstofmany," Townsend wrote.

"Growing up, there weren't a lot of tennis players I could look up to that looked like me," Osaka, whose father is from Haiti and mother is from Japan, said in her Instagram post about the dinner.

"Being a minority in a sport like tennis is very isolating, but the positive is that you keep tabs on everyone that … being blunt, is black. There's a fellowship, a camaraderie."

Osaka added in a press conference that she "felt like everyone in that room was a part of my family".

Black athletes have constantly been forced to address political issues, like Muhammad Ali's rejection of military service in 1967. (Getty Images)

For Townsend, "it wasn't just about the culture, it was healing for us to all be able to speak about our journeys".

Gauff's title defence ended with a loss to Anastasia Potapova in the third round, but Osaka has reached the fourth round in Paris for the first time in her career while showing off her taste for fashion with her elaborate walk-on outfits.

American player Townsend and Czech partner Kateřina Siniaková, the top-seeded doubles team, have won their opening three matches and are into the quarterfinals.

Gauff beat Townsend in the opening round of the singles, after which a ceremony was held on Court Philippe-Chatrier to honour the 70th anniversary of Althea Gibson's 1956 French Open victory; the first grand slam