Jelena Ostapenko reveals ‘disrespectful behaviour’ Qatar Open crowd displayed during her quarter-final win
Jelena Ostapenko, who reached the semifinals of the Qatar Open, has criticised the crowd for their disrespectful behaviour during her 6-2, 6-2 victory over Ons Jabeur. The Latvian, a former French Open champion, was not happy with the partisan fans who jeered her throughout the match.
Despite the hostile atmosphere, Ostapenko’s aggressive playing style proved too much for the Tunisian, as she fired four aces and broke Jabeur five times. Ostapenko will now face three-time defending champion Iga Swiatek in Friday’s semifinal after Swiatek defeated Elena Rybakina 6-2, 7-5.
In her post-match interview, Ostapenko expressed frustration with the crowd, particularly their behaviour between serves, including shouting, whistling, and coughing. “I know Ons is their favourite, I respect that, but between serves, shouting and whistling and coughing, I think it’s a little bit disrespectful,” she said. “Not only to me, if this happens to any other player, I think they should be taken care of.”
However, the 27-year-old admitted that the crowd’s behaviour also motivated her to perform better. “Some moments they were even motivating me better, like more and more, and I was playing even better, so I kind of liked it,” she said.
On court after her victory, Ostapenko addressed the crowd, saying, “It’s great that Ons is playing like a woman from the Middle East and she is representing. It’s amazing what she has done for tennis, but you guys made me angry and more motivated.”
Ostapenko, who has an unbeaten 4-0 record against Swiatek, will look to continue her strong form in Doha, having previously defeated fourth seed Jasmine Paolini 6-2, 6-2 in the earlier rounds.
