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(Photo credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images)

American Taylor Townsend engaged in a heated exchange with Jelena Ostapenko after her 7-5, 6-1 victory over the Latvian in the second round of the U.S. Open on Tuesday.

As the two players met at the net to shake hands, Ostapenko said something that Townsend clearly took issue with. The conversation escalated as the two players argued near Ostapenko’s chair, before Townsend walked away to shake the umpire’s hand before pumping up the crowd on Court 11.

‘It’s competition, people get upset when they lose,’ Townsend told ESPN after the match. ‘Some people have no class, I have no education and to see what happens when we get outside of the U.S.’

Ostapenko, the 2017 French Open champion, was seeded 25th at Flushing Meadows this year. She took to social media after her match to discuss the confrontation.

‘Today after the match I told my opponent that she was very disrespectful as she had a net ball in a very deciding moment and didn’t say sorry, but her answer was that she doesn’t have to say sorry at all,’ Ostapenko posted. ‘There are some rules in tennis which most of the players follow and it was the first time ever that this happened to me on tour. If she plays in her homeland it doesn’t mean that she can behave and do whatever she wants.’

Townsend, who is the top-ranked doubles player in the world but ranked just No. 139 in the world in singles, was asked in her post-match press conference if she thought there were racial undertones to Ostapenko’s comments during their confrontation.

‘No. I can’t speak on what her intentions were,’ Townsend said. ‘I can only speak on how I handled the situation. And how I handled it is someone who’s upset about the outcome that occurred. You lost, and you’re upset about that.

‘Saying I have no education, no class… I don’t really take that personally because I know that it’s so far from the truth. If I allow what other people have to say about me affect me in that way, then they win. So ultimately, no. I stood up for myself and I kept it in my mind in that moment how I wanted to portray myself and how I wanted to show up.

‘The thing that I’m most proud of is that I let my racket talk. Because ultimately, I’m the one moving on to the next round, getting the next check. Moving on, being able to still be here. That’s what’s the most important. She’s packed up and she’s gone. I’m here.’

There is significant history between the two on the court. That includes a 6-2, 6-1 win by Townsend in Canada in August 2024, which she referenced in the ESPN interview, as well as a doubles victory over Ostapenko and her partner, Lyudmyla Kichenok, earlier that summer.

Townsend and doubles partner Katerina Siniakova then lost to Ostapenko and Su-Wei Hsie in the semifinals of Wimbledon this past June. Townsend did beat Ostapenko and her partner in the first round of mixed doubles at the event. Townsend and Siniakova also beat Ostapenko and Hsieh in three sets to win the Australian Open doubles title at the Australian Open in January.

Ostapenko took to social media again on Wednesday following Townsend’s press conference.

‘Wow how many messages I received that I am a racist. I was NEVER racist in my life and I respect all nations of people in the world, for me it doesn’t matter where you come from,’ she posted. ‘There are some rules in tennis, and unfortunately, when the crowd is with you, you can’t use them in a disrespectful way to your opponent. Unfortunately for me, coming from such a small country, I don’t have that huge support and a chance to play in my homeland. I always loved to play in the U.S. and the U.S. Open, but this is the first time someone is approaching the match this disrespectful way.’

Tuesday marked Townsend’s first victory in a major over a Top 25 opponent since beating 19th-seeded Haddad Maia in the 2023 U.S. Open. She will face fifth-seeded Mirra Andreeva in the third round on Friday.

Townsend and Ostapenko still have a potential meeting in the women’s doubles draw as well, although it would have to come in the final. Townsend and Siniakova are the No. 1 seed, while Ostapenko and partner Barbora Krejcikva are unseeded on the other side of the draw.

–Field Level Media