By Richard Pagliaro | @TennisNow | Thursday, February 13, 2025
Photo credit: Mohamed Farag/Getty
Jeered by some fans, Jelena Ostapenko played mute-master in Doha.
Fired up by some fans whistling and yelling during her serve, Ostapenko silenced both the disruptors and Ons Jabeur 6-2, 6-2 charging into her third career Doha semifinal and a blockbuster showdown vs. three-time defending champion Iga Swiatek.
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“Thank you guys for not cheering me because it made me even more motivated,” Ostapenko told the crowd in her on-court interview afterward. “I know some people were cheering for me so thank you guys.”
A crowd-sourcing lesson from this match: Make Ostapenko mad and she will be driven to get even. After closing the win, a pumped up Ostapenko screamed in victory and gave extended waves to the crowd.
“I feel when you’re playing in a stadium when everyone is cheering for your opponent, it’s great,” Ostapenko said. “It’s amazing what she has accomplished but you know guys you made me angry and more motivated, but this is normal.
“I hope you guys enjoyed the match so thank you.”
Ostapenko used the crowd antipathy as fuel to fire her up in a move slightly reminiscent of the young Daniil Medvedev, who famously fingered US Open fans during his 2019 triumph over Feliciano Lopez then trolled booing fans during his on-court interview.
“I want all of you to know, when you sleep tonight, I won because of you,” Medvedev told US Open fans inciting even more boos.
“The more you do this, the more I will win,” a smiling Medvedev said. “For you guys! Thank you!”
Novak Djokovic, Serena Williams, Lleyton Hewitt, John McEnroe, Pancho Gonzalez, Medvedev and Ostapenko are among the rare major champions who could channel crowd antagonism into decisive action on court.
“We hoped he wouldn’t get upset,” Rod Laver once said of fellow Hall of Famer Gonzalez. “It just made him tougher.”
Though Ostapenko is no stranger to creating emotional havoc with opponents and even some unruly fans, in this case some fans were intentionally trying to disrupt her serve.
Deadlocked at 1-all in the second set a few unruly fans began shouting during her ball toss. Ostapenko, who has a habit of catching tosses even on completely calm days, tried to smile off the disruptors and even offered them a thumbs-up at one point.
Withstanding the screams and jeers, Ostapenko held then immediately broke for 3-1. Ostapenko avenged a 7-6(4), 7-5 loss to Jabeur in Abu Dhabi last week.
World No. 36 Ostapenko will face three-time defending champion Iga Swiatek in a semifinal showdown of reigning and former Roland Garros champions.
The 2017 French Open champion Ostapenko is 4-0 lifetime vs. Swiatek, including knocking her out of the 2023 US Open. Three-time champion Swiatek rides a 15-match Doha winning streak into tomorrow’s semifinals.
“It’s a pretty good balance so I hope I can keep it up tomorrow,” said 2016 Doha finalist Ostapenko. “I feel when I’m playing my game I can honestly beat many players.
“I felt some tournaments were close matches and I didn’t win, but I feel the hard work pays off. I’m finding my game more and more.”
