Jelena Ostapenko voiced her frustration with the Wimbledon crowd after harnessing her anger to secure a first-round victory over British ace Harriet Dart. The Latvian, who stepped onto court sporting Tesco branding on her kit, was met with jeers during her hard-fought triumph over Dart, having turned to face the spectators after being broken back in the decisive third set.
Match details
Ostapenko claimed the opening set against her British opponent, only for Dart to level by taking the second 6-3 before drawing level at 4-4 in the third, piling the pressure on the former semi-finalist. The 29-year-old regrouped to clinch the following two games and made her feelings towards the crowd clear.
Ostapenko, who confirmed the Tesco partnership was limited to her opening match, acknowledged that partisan crowds are a part of the sport. However, she still expressed her disappointment at the reception she received at SW19.
Ostapenko's comments
"I think [certain home crowds elsewhere] are a bit more intense probably," she said. "At least today, I mean, there were some points where they were clapping for double faults. I was obviously not happy with that. But, I mean, this is normal, because they are trying to support their local player. I think especially after the first set when Harriet was leading in the second set, I felt like they were into it because they wanted also a third set."
The world No. 31 also discussed her efforts to convert her anger into a positive force on the court. She added: "I feel like I use it in a good way. I said 'angry,' but in a good way. I try to... transform it into the game."
Commentator reactions
During the match, BBC commentator Martina Navratilova dismissed the notion that spectators were specifically booing Ostapenko's errors, while fellow broadcaster Chris Bradnam suggested she was picking a fight with 12,000 people. "Not a good idea [to rile up the crowd] but I think she's used to that," former champion Navratilova said. "They're not applauding the fact that she double-faulted, they're applauding that Harriet Dart broke serve and it's back on serve. So these days it's expected but it still gets frustrating."
Looking ahead
Ostapenko, who reached the semi-finals at Wimbledon in 2018, acknowledged there will inevitably be backing for a British player regardless of the opponent. However, she joked that the home supporters should get behind her in the next round. "I think for me it's, like, I know it's a local player, and this is very normal, they are supporting the local player," Ostapenko said. "But for me, I think I kind of proved them they are wrong and they should support another, like me, and I just try to prove it with the game." "But in a good way, not like, you know, as I said, it's very normal they are supporting the local player, but just in a good way. I try to prove, you guys are around next match, you should support me," she laughed.
