Taylor Townsend responds to Jelena Ostapenko’s indirect apology: “It’s better to focus on yourself”

Ostapenko apologized for the comments she made to Townsend after a match on Wednesday, when she told her she had “no class” and “no education.”

Taylor Townsend has said her final word on the incident between herself and Jelena Ostapenko, which is “focus on yourself.”

Ostapenko took to social media yesterday to apologize for her “no class” and “no education” comments she made to Townsend after Townsend beat her in a second-round singles match on Wednesday. She did not apologize directly to Townsend in the post.

“English is not my first language, so when I said education, I was speaking only about what I believe as tennis etiquette, but I understand how the words used could have offended many people beyond the tennis court,” Ostapenko, who is from Latvia, wrote in the post.

When asked about the apology post at a US press conference, Townsend said it was “nice” that Ostapenko apologized.

“She expected for me to react in a certain type of way, and I didn’t, and it infuriated her,” Townsend said. “Which led her to say things that are hurtful, that are belligerent, that are offensive not only to me but to the sport and to a whole culture of people that I try to do my best to represent the best that I can.”  

When Townsend was first asked to address Ostapenko’s comments on Wednesday, she told the press that she would not “tolerate disrespect.”

“I’m just not going to tolerate disrespect. You’re not going to disrespect me in my face,” she said. “I’m very proud as a Black woman being out here representing myself and representing us and our culture. I make sure that I do everything that I can to be the best representation possible every time that I step on the court and even off the court.” 

After Ostapenko’s comments, Townsend received an outpouring of support from tennis fans and peers. Naomi Osaka called Ostapenko’s remarks “one of the worst things you can say to a Black tennis player in a majority white sport.” Coco Gauff and Sloane Stephens, expressed disappointment that the conversation has shifted away from Townsend’s tennis abilities, and even Venus Williams have praised Townsend for how she responded.

“I thought Taylor handled it amazing,” Williams said. ” She handled it with class, a situation that was not so classy. And just moved on and won again.”

Townsend will continue in the women’s singles tournament today against Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic. Her last statement on Ostapenko was, “I hope from this she can take that you can’t control people, and it’s better to focus on yourself”.