Painted flames curled round Taylor Townsend’s sleeves as she shocked world No. 5 Mirra Andreeva 7-5, 6-2 within the third round of the US Open on Friday.
The American – who has unexpectedly discovered herself within the highlight following a tense post-match exchange on Wednesday with Jelena Ostapenko – stated that the design represented phoenixes, an essential image for her.
“The premise is you having to burn or lose your old self in order to emerge as something new,” she advised reporters after defeating Andreeva on Friday. “I feel like that’s indicative of my career, me as a person, me as a woman, me as a player.” Against Ostapenko too, Townsend’s skirt was adorned with flames.
She took simply 76 minutes to defeat Andreeva, who’s ranked 134 locations above her within the WTA rankings, and reach the fourth round, equaling her best-ever efficiency at a grand slam singles match, which got here on the 2019 US Open.
More recognized for her doubles prowess – she is a reigning Australian Open girls’s doubles champion and world No. 1 – Townsend used all that have, dominating on the internet to take the match away from Andreeva.
“People have all the time stated, ‘Oh, you’re so gifted, you’ve got so many weapons, you’ve got so many issues you are able to do, however…’ There was all the time a ‘but,’ she stated.
“I feel like the work I’ve been put in and all the things I’ve been doing has eliminated that ‘but.’ I’m emerging as a new person. I feel like today I leveled up. I’m really just so proud of myself.”
Her win got here within the wake of a tense change with Ostapenko following their second-round match on Wednesday, throughout which the Latvian could possibly be heard saying Townsend had “no class” and “no education.” Naomi Osaka criticized these feedback as “one of the worst things you can say to a Black tennis player in a majority White sport.”
“I think it’s ill timing and the worst person you could have ever said it to. And I don’t know if she knows the history of it in America,” Osaka added. “But I know she’s never going to say that ever again in her life.”
According to Ostapenko, the origin of the argument got here from a second of controversy that isn’t a part of tennis’ codified legal guidelines and as an alternative an act of – or lack of, on this case – sportsmanship.
The Latvian defined on social media that her frustrations originated from a second halfway by their second-round match when Townsend didn’t say “sorry” after being helped by the online twine throughout some extent.
The controversy has heaped additional consideration on Townsend, however the 29-year-old stated afterward that “it hasn’t been hard at all” to shut that out.
“It wasn’t hard, because I stood in my truth,” she stated. “So I didn’t have to defend anything that I said.”
The crowd inside Arthur Ashe Stadium gave her a standing ovation as she thanked “everyone who supported me over these last 48 hours.”
“It’s bigger than me, it’s about the message, it’s about the representation … You guys saw the real Taylor Townsend tonight,” she added.
Townsend will face two-time grand slam singles winner Barbora Krejčíková within the fourth round.