Former champion Naomi Osaka plans to wear a mask bearing the name of a different African American victim of police violence while entering the court ahead of each of her matches at the U.S. Open, a gesture in support of the fight against racial injustice in the United States.

Despite some criticism on social media over the move, Osaka, who was born to a Haitian father and a Japanese mother, has prepared seven such masks to equal the number of matches she will play in the Grand Slam if she reaches the final.

Naomi Osaka of Japan walks in wearing a mask with the name Elijah McClain on it before her Womens Singles second round match against Camila Giorgi of Italy at the U.S. Open in New York on Sept. 2, 2020 (Getty/Kyodo)

Noting that seven masks are not enough to honor the number of black people lost to police brutality in the country, Osaka said that she hopes to show all seven while keeping her tournament hopes alive.

In her second-round match on Wednesday, Osaka entered the court wearing a face mask with the name of Elijah McClain, a 23-year-old African American man who died in August 2019 in Colorado after reportedly being placed in a chokehold by police.

For Monday's first-round play, she entered wearing a mask with the name Breonna Taylor, a black woman killed by Louisville police in March. Osaka said after her three-set win against compatriot Misaki Doi that she had seven similar masks in all.

Naomi Osaka (Getty/Kyodo)

Prior to the U.S. Open, Osaka decided to sit out her semifinal match at the Western and Southern Open last week in solidarity with athletes in other sports who were refusing to play as a protest action against racial injustice.

After the tournament was put on hold for a day to recognize the issue, Osaka agreed to participate when play resumed the following day. She ended up reaching the final but withdrew due to a leg injury.

Osaka faces 137th-ranked Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine in the third round of the U.S. Open.