Jelena Ostapenko defeated Iga Swiatek in a thrilling match in Dubai however the Latvian was very unhappy about the behaviour of Polish fans in attendance.
Ostapenko battled Swiatek and the Polish fans during the fairly long match that saw her ultimately win it in the 3rd set tiebreak. The atmosphere was very good the entire match and Ostapenko is a player who enjoys a good atmosphere but she also called out Polish fans for some things she thought were out of line. Asked what she thought of the fans and the atmosphere, she said:
"I think it's really nice, the fans there. The Polish people were a little bit too nice because, like, clapping for double-faults. I don't think it's the right way. It's not a football match, it's a tennis match at the end. When she was making double-faults, nobody was clapping because people know how to behave. Some of them, of course, they were behaving not the way they should."
She admitted that it fueled her even more and it was evident when the match ended. Ostapenko released her energy with a loud scream after the match celebrating the win. On that she said:
"I think it only made me more angry and more hungry to win. I didn't really care what they were doing. In general it was nice atmosphere."
Shots fired by Jelena Ostapenko after her win over Swiatek: "The Polish people were a bit not too nice, like, clapping for double-faults. I don't think it's the right way. It's not a football match, it's a tennis match at the end." "It only made me more angry & hungry to win."
