(VIDEO) Bad blood: Drama with no Ostapenko and Kalinskaya handshake as pair ignore each other after Dubai comments
WTAMonday, 11 May 2026 at 15:50
Jelena Ostapenko flew into the Quarter-Finals of the Rome Open with a comprehensive 6-1, 6-2 win over Anna Kalinskaya but perhaps the post match was the most dramatic part of it in a pretty one-sided affair for the Latvian.
Kalinskaya didn't even try to engage with Ostapenko and they didn't greet each other at the net as Ostapenko went straight to the umpire and Kalinskaya her chair to put her racquets away.
But this bad blood is for a reason on both sides as Ostapenko spoke disparagingly about Kalinskaya at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships earlier in the year where the Russian sealed the win.
It was her first win in five attempts after Kalinskaya won in three earlier this year. But Ostapenko made reportedly pretty derogatory comments towards her in that Dubai match aimed at her coaches and camp and as a result both don't particularly like each other. Ostapenko sticking to her comments by ignoring her and Kalinskaya perhaps rightfully due to that.
But Ostapenko moves through. Kalinskaya still plays doubles with Iva Jovic who headed out earlier this afternoon losing to Coco Gauff after being match point up.
Es tremenda la cantidad de malos rollos que hay entre tenistas en la WTA.
— José Morón (@jmgmoron) May 11, 2026
Ostapenko y Kalinskaya ni se saludaron hoy en la red ya que la letona se refirió de manera muy despectiva hacia la rusa en Dubai, este mismo año. pic.twitter.com/GMi7SLza3a
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