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Jelena Ostapenko has made an instant impact at the US Open, in more ways than one. The Latvian star, who is seeded No 20 in New York, got her tournament off to a winning start in a tough first-round match against Jasmine Paolini.
After comfortably taking the first set 6-2, life got a lot more difficult for Ostapenko as her Italian opponent responded strongly to take the second set 6-4.
But the 2017 French Open champion was not about to throw away her campaign in the first round and roared back to clinch the deciding set 6-1, ensuring that she made it into the second round at Flushing Meadows for the fifth time in her career.
The former world No 5 did more than catch the attention of spectators with her tennis skills, however. Ostapenko is sponsored by Latvian brand DK ONE and has become known for sporting daring loud outfits on the court.
The 26-year-old took the opportunity of her first round match to don a florescent green and yellow two-piece that was as loud as the Flushing Meadows crowd.
It didn’t take long for fans to jump on social media and pass their judgement, with some comparing her outfit to a huge highlighter or a huge tennis ball, while others simply applauded her outlandish fashion sense.
@5teelersfan wrote on X: “Jelena Ostapenko, dressed up as a big tennis ball again, wins her first round match vs Jasmine Paolini.”
@Some1NamedRyan wrote: “Ostapenko bringing big highlighter energy to the USO this year,” while @Noliesfound added: “One thing about Ostapenko we can all agree – She doesn’t care what anyone thinks of any of it. Her style, her personality and her on-court behavior.”
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But Ostapenko was not the only player to don bright green for their New York opener. US hopeful Coco Gauff was also rigged out in a similar-looking outfit for her first-round come-from-behind victory against Laura Siegemund.
Fan account @teamgauff wrote on X: “Coco Gauff and Jelena Ostapenko decided to wear matching outfits for the US Open! How cute.”
Ostapenko will have the chance to show off another daring example of sports fashion when she faces Elina Avanesyan in the second round on Wednesday. The Russian has climbed up the rankings to world No 68 in recent months, due in part to a decent run at the French Open where she upset the No 12 seed Belinda Bencic en route to the fourth round.
Ostapenko started the year by reaching the quarter-finals of the Australian Open before winning her only tour title of 2023 so far at the Birmingham Classic in June.
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