Wimbledon: Coco Gauff Defends Controversial Jelena Ostapenko From Catching Strays by Exposing the Real ‘Cheaters’ of WTA

Controversies love following Jelena Ostapenko! Her long heated debates with umpires about close calls, and her distrust of the electronic line calling, have time and again put her in the headlines. Several WTA stars have spoken about her ‘unique ability to detect out balls’ during the matches. Does she perform the same rituals during practice sessions? Well, American tennis star Coco Gauff can perhaps answer this question because she labels Ostapenko as “one of her favorite” to practice with!

In the 2023 season, during one of her matches, a controversy erupted when fans heard, “Imagine how much she cheats people in practice” while listening to ESPN’s Commentary. How true is this statement, and what does Coco Gauff think about these allegations surrounding Ostapenko? During a press conference at Wimbledon, Gauff was asked if she had ever been cheated by players in practice. Replying to this question, the 20-year-old American, “We had a conversation about how some players on tour like to call the lines a little bit too much in practice. We were having a laugh out of that.”

Before anyone in the room could jump to any conclusions, Coco Gauff added, “It’s not anyone you’d think. I know people are gonna think ‘Oh maybe it’s Ostapenko’ because she does that. But she’s actually one of my favorite people to practice with. She’s just funny. I think she genuinely thinks her ball is in but she doesn’t do it in practice. It’s definitely other people.”

Previously Caroline Wozniacki and Jessica Pegula also spoke about the controversial Latvian tennis star. Despite Gauff’s admission of Jelena Ostapenko being her favorite person to practice with, there are some who think, “Let’s just say I practiced with her once and chose not to do so again.” And she’s none other than Caroline Wozniacki. This is exactly what she had said while commentating at the 2023.

Another American, Jessica Pegula, thinks Ostapenko is someone who “always thinks it’s out!” Even Victoria Azarenka once called her line calling to be “a bit comical.” How does Jelena Ostapenko view her controversial reputation in the tennis world?

Coco Gauff’s “favorite” player to practice with, is a pure entertainer on the court!

While reflecting on her controversial reputation, Jelena Ostapenko revealed, “It’s more entertaining to watch the players who are showing some emotions.” She has always been someone who doesn’t hide her emotions or thoughts too often. Ostapenko loves to speak her mind. A prime example of this was seen after her fourth-round match against Coco Gauff at the 2023 Australian Open. After defeating Gauff in two sets in the match, she gave an on-court interview in which she vented out her frustration on the electronic line calling system.

She said, “Honestly, this live electronic system, I don’t know. Sometimes it feels like it makes some mistakes. Of course, we have to play. Sometimes I look at my team because I know I’m wrong, but I feel like some balls are pretty close, so I want to know what they think about the call.”

Jelena Ostapenko further went on to add, “Sometimes it’s one centimeter out, which is like ‘Wow,’ but in the deciding moments, I think it went in and that’s the most important.” Do you think Jelena Ostapenko is right in saying “Hawk-Eyes makes mistakes”?