American Taylor Townsend Downplays Racial Undertones After Tense Encounter At US Open
American Taylor Townsend downplayed the potential racial undertones to her opponent’s post-match comments at the US Open, but said Jelena Ostapenko told her she had “no class.”
After losing to Townsend, 7-5, 6-1, in the second round on Wednesday, the Latvian player got into an argument with her opponent for an extended period as the crowd booed.
“She told me I have no class, I have no education, and to see what happens when we get outside the U.S.,” Townsend told ESPN’s Kris Budden.
“So I’m looking forward to it. I beat her in Canada outside the U.S. I beat her in New York outside the U.S., so let’s see what else she has to say.”
Video showed Townsend telling Ostapenko, “You can learn how to take a loss better. Thank you so much. Great job, great play.”
Townsend was asked if she thought there were racial undertones to Townsend’s comments.
