TENNIS fans fumed at the “disrepectful” hand shake between Jelena Ostapenko and Victoria Azarenka at the end of their match in Doha.
The two were competing in the Qatar Open, with Azarenka beating Ostapenko 6-0 6-3.
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Azarenka’s win sets her up for a clash with world no1 Iga Swiatek.
Ostapenko, who refused to shake Azarenka’s hand, had been shaky throughout the match, hitting 49 unforced errors.
After Azarenka hit the game winner, the two walked over to the net for the traditional hand shake between two competitors.
Rather than holding out her hand, Ostapenko held out her racket, with the handle pointed towards Azarenka.
Azarenka looked visibly confused and batted away Ostapenko’s attempts to shake hands via the racket.
Ostapenko then walked away unfazed and straight back to the changing rooms after the bruising defeat.
Some have suggested that the snub could be because of Latvian Ostapenko’s Ukrainian heritage, with Azarenka hailing from Belarus – one of Russia‘s key allies in its war against Ukraine.
But in the two’s previous meetings last year, at Brisbane and the Australian Open, the two shook hands at the net.
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When asked about Ostapenko’s behaviour after the game, Azarenka said: “I think it’s something you kind of expect.
“She’s doing what she’s doing. It’s actually interesting because I feel like it doesn’t necessarily always affect her. When she’s winning, she’s like this; when she’s losing, she’s like this. I think it’s just how she deals with herself on the court.
“I can’t speak for how she feels and why she does it. Some of [Ostapenko’s] line callings, I mean, it can be a bit comical … I just think that’s how she is. I don’t necessarily judge. I’m just there to play a match.”
Fans were thoroughly unimpressed with Ostapenko’s behaviour on X (formerly known as Twitter), with one saying: “So disrespectful from Ostapenko… But I’m not surprised.”
Another wrote: “What a bum move. Have some respect for your opponent.”
A third posted: “Why does Ostapenko suck so hard?”
While a fourth thought more positively of Ostapenko’s outburst and wrote: “Life would be duller without Ostapenko.”