U.S. Open Stars Taylor Townsend & Jelena Ostapenko Speak Out After Tense Post-Match Exchange

Tennis stars Taylor Townsend and Jelena Ostapenko are speaking out on that tense exchange after their U.S. Open match on Aug 27. Despite the pair initially shaking hands, camera footage shows them in what appears to be an argument on the court after Jelena reportedly told Taylor she should apologize for a shot that clipped the top of the net but stayed in play, referred to as a net cord. Following the heated discussion, Taylor went over to the stands and started hyping up the crowd as she celebrated her win. Following the spat, the No. 1-ranked doubles player spoke to reporters at the post-match press conference and revealed if there was any previous history between her and Jelena. During the conference, Taylor claimed Jelena told her she had “no class” and “no education” and answered a reporter’s question about whether she thought there were racial undertones to those comments. Jelena took to Instagram to share her side of the story and denied that race played a role in her remarks.