US OPEN

August 27, 2025

Taylor Townsend

Press Conference

T. TOWNSEND/J. Ostapenko

7-5, 6-1

TAYLOR TOWNSEND: Hello, everybody. This is the type of day you all live for. Who's going to run it up? Who's going to start?

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Today is HBCU Day. First, talk about how much representation matters and if you could hear the fans cheering for you out there.

TAYLOR TOWNSEND: Could you hear the fans cheering? They were so loud. I love Court 11. I think the whole park could hear the court and the fans.

First off, yeah. I mean, representation is everything. I honored that and represent myself in a certain type of way and represent for us, you know, by the way that I carry myself, the way that I speak, the way that I act.

So representation is everything, because you have to see it to believe it, even if it's just one, and I think that's so special, especially with us honoring Althea Gibson because she was the first woman of color to show up and pave the way for us, and everyone to be here, honestly.

And it's special to me. My sister is a former FAMU Rattler. When I was walking through the tunnel and I saw the band, I was, like, Y'all got a band again? I want to hear. It was really, really cool even for that to be able to merge the worlds of tennis and even HBCU, because, you know, it's such a rich history and rich culture.

My sister, she got mad at me because I said, I'm an honorary Bison, and she's a Rattler. So shout out to FAMU. I think she'll like that.

Representation is everything. I'm really happy to have won today. And also, I'm really proud of Sean Holcomb and the USTA for being able to kind of bring a piece of our culture and our history into tennis.

Q. I do have to ask you straight away about what happened at the handshake there. Perhaps you can talk us through that. Also, have you had any history with Jelena? I know you've played each other in singles and multiple times in doubles. Perhaps you could just talk us through it.

TAYLOR TOWNSEND: Like you said, we've played many times before. I played her in Toronto last year in singles. We've played probably before that. Most recently in the semifinals of Wimbledon in doubles.

No, there's never been any history. I don't know how she feels about me, but there's no beef on my side. She told me I have no education, no class, and to see what happens if we play each other outside of the U.S. I said, I'm excited, bring it.

I've never been the one to back down from anything like that. I just thought that it was really interesting. She was playing amazing in the first set and couldn't miss. I had my head down and head in my strings and just tried to just continue to plug away.

That's what I kept telling myself. Keep fighting. Hopefully you'll get a break and you'll get an opportunity to try and implement some of your strategy, but she was kind of taking the racquet out of my hands. I mean, was hitting amazing shots. Serve plus one off of my returns, playing really great tennis.

Sometimes that happens. In my head I was, like, if this is one of those matches, because she's that type of player, it's just one of those matches. But I wasn't disappointed in the first set of anything that I was doing. I wasn't doing anything wrong. She was just playing really well.

Then when the tables turned, it all of a sudden became an issue. You know, so I chalked it up to competition. I chalk it up to being upset and, you know, she pulled out all the stops to try and break the momentum. Sometimes people do that, but it is what it is.

Still, there's no beef. But again, like you guys saw, I didn't back down because you're not going to insult me, especially after I carried myself a certain type of way with nothing but respect. If I show respect to you, I expect respect as well. That's just the fact of the matter.

I think that that's tennis, right? You know no matter what's going on, it's me versus you, but at the end of the day we have to respect each other and respect what happens out on the court. It's competition.

So, you know, it was unfortunate, but, you know, it's something I can put on my TikTok (laughing).

Q. Did you see what she posted recently?

TAYLOR TOWNSEND: No, my phone is glitching. So many messages.

Q. She claims that her complaint was -- and I'll preface this by saying what she said to you is beyond the pale. I'm just saying what she said because I'm curious what your reaction is, not to justify what she said. She said that complaining about not making an apology at the net for when your ball hit the net and then also during the warmup you went right -- you went right to practice volleys, and those are quote, unquote, "against the rules of tennis."

TAYLOR TOWNSEND: Oh, wow.

Q. There's no apology in that post or anything like that.

TAYLOR TOWNSEND: I don't expect one.

Q. I'm curious what your reaction is to that. Do you care whether -- given what she said, playing in the doubles, what do you think? Should she be allowed to play in the doubles?

TAYLOR TOWNSEND: Yeah, I mean, it's sports. I feel like people have gotten a little bit soft. I'm not going to lie. It's sports. People talk trash. You know, people say things. Whatever, people get mad.

Everyone has a right to feel how they feel. The problem is don't push your expectations on me. If you expect for someone to apologize and they don't and you get upset about it, that's your fault, not mine.

At the end of the day I honestly was, like, shocked that it was a net cord, because I was ready to play the point. So she was standing at the net afterwards after she missed the shot was, like, oh, whatever.

But this isn't anything new. Let's not act like this is new. It's not new. You know, people know that this is the MO.

Like I said, all the stops were pulled out. You know, this isn't the first, second, third, fourth time I've played Jelena, so if she's complaining about how I warm up, that's fine. Everyone knows this isn't -- this is something that I do. You can go back to the time that I played my first-ever pro tennis match, and I've been doing this since even juniors.

It wasn't anything targeted towards her to try and take her off of her game or her rhythm. You know, I just was doing my thing.

Honestly, laugh at it. I think it's comical. I think that it's kind of funny, because to then go online and have to justify what you said, you obviously feel some type of way and feel like you have to give an explanation for how you acted.

I don't feel like I have to explain how I acted. I think it was very self-explanatory. I'm standing in what I said.

Q. Just going back to the handshake moment, were you shocked about what she said?

TAYLOR TOWNSEND: No. Are you?

Q. Yeah.

TAYLOR TOWNSEND: Okay. Like I said, it's happened many times, you know, with other players as well. She may not be so -- she might not voice it the same way, but you know, the complaining and all the stuff is the same.

So, again, it's an expectation for someone to act outside of their normal behavior, what they've shown in the past. I'm not surprised at all.

Q. Have you ever had with another player a conversation like that at the net? How strange is that at the end of a match when, say, there have been tensions, that you've got to go and shake hands and pretend you're all kind of friendly?

TAYLOR TOWNSEND: I don't pretend by that. I don't pretend. I'm very straight-up. That's one of the things that I'm very real and honest, which is why I'm able to stand here and be real about my feelings and what I think, because I don't put on for anything, anyone, nobody.

I've had that incident one time at a challenger many years ago in Charlottesville. Asia Muhammad actually had to take me off the court because I was so upset. The girl that I played was so disrespectful. We were playing a challenger. It was a 50,000. There are no ball kids. There are no ball people. Girl was slapping balls to the third and fourth court. I have to go walk and get the balls.

I ended up winning and said some really, like, nasty things. Again, it was one of the things I'm, like -- I'm just not going to tolerate disrespect. You're not going to disrespect me in my face.

I'm a firm believer and I'm the type of person where if you have something to say, you feel some type of way, you say it to my face, and we can talk about it, we can hash it out.

It is what it is, but I stand strong and I stand firm in who I am. I don't back down from confrontation. And, again, it's sports. This is a part of sport. You can feel any type of way that you want to, but again, I just don't think that you should push your expectations and how you feel about something on other people and try to make someone else feel bad about that because you feel like they should conduct themselves in a certain type of way.

Q. (Off mic.)

TAYLOR TOWNSEND: It was one of the Rodionova sisters. I actually had run-ins with both of them.

Q. Based on your emotion after the handshake and stuff and even when you walked into this room, you talked about it's part of sports. Do you enjoy this part of sports? It can be the combat sort of side of this head-to-head sport that this is.

TAYLOR TOWNSEND: Absolutely. I'm an Aries, so I'm a fire sign. I wore fire today. Maybe that's why I was fired up. I was ready to go (laughing).

Yeah, I mean, this is one of the reasons why I love sports. You know, to be able to watch the tension and watch things and to see how someone can handle themselves in the moment. You know, how they handled their emotions, how they handle ups and downs, how they handle momentum shifts, you know, things that are thrown in the mix of whether it's to try and break your rhythm, break your momentum, how do they handle it mentally?

This is what makes sports, and that's what makes it fun. That's what I'm shifting the narrative. That's what I'm the most proud of today. I was really, really strong mentally from start to finish. And again, like I said, she was playing very well. I really couldn't do anything. She was playing well. She was hitting her spots.

I just kept fighting, and I kept telling myself, just keep fighting, just keep trying, you're doing the right things, and hopefully you get a break. If you don't get a break and she stays here, it's just too good. That happens as well, which is a part of sports and there are some days where people are just on.

I had accepted that mentally. This could just be one of those days, and I'm okay with that. So this is the fun thing about sports, and I'm really proud of myself for the way that I fought. I'm proud of myself for the way that I was able to be mentally tough and stay locked in in the moments that matter.

That is a testament to the hard work that I've been doing on the court as well as off the court with my coach, because those are the moments that in the past, and if I reflect back, maybe would have shaken me or would have gotten me off of my game.

Today I was rock solid, and that's what I'm really, really proud of.

Q. You said you really like Court 11. It was standing room only. I don't think I've ever seen Court 11 that crowded. It seemed like it almost could have been on Armstrong. I don't know if you noticed, but there were fewer Armstrong matches available this year. They've gone from three to two in the day session. From a logistical standpoint, has it been more difficult to get court assignments, practice times when there are fewer courts available seemingly around the grounds?

TAYLOR TOWNSEND: No, the Player Services team, Haley, she's a gem and has been really helpful. Over the last couple of years it's been consistently absolutely amazing when it comes to prioritizing American players and making sure that we're taken care of.

So, no, I haven't had any problems practicing, getting practice courts. I was able to hit on Grandstand a couple of times. I got a chance to hit actually on a stadium court. Not by asking, just because they gave me that option.

No, I haven't had any issues, but I love those courts. I think that it's really cool that the spectators are able to kind of have that experience. I love Court 11. I love Court 17. I've had some really great matches on all of these courts.

I love it, but no, the Player Services team, everyone at the USTA, has been taking really great care of all of us American players and making sure we have everything that we need.

Q. For a lot of Black people, hearing no "education, no class" would be interpreted and, rightfully so, as a dog whistle. Do you believe that that had racial undertones? And, for Black people and Black women who will hear about this and may have dealt with certain situations where they've had comments where they've interpreted it as more than just competition, what would you say to them?

TAYLOR TOWNSEND: That's a two-part question. First, no, I don't know -- I can't speak on what her intentions were. I can only speak on how I handled the situation, and how I handled it is someone who is upset about the outcome that occurred. You lost, and you're upset about that.

Saying I have no education and no class, I don't really take that personally, because I know that it's so far from the truth and so far from anything. Again, if I allow what other people have to say about me affect me in that way, then they win. So ultimately, no.

I stood up for myself, and I kept in my mind in that moment how I wanted to portray myself and how I wanted to show up, and if my son were to see this interaction, how would he view it? I think he would be proud of the way that I handled the situation.

I'm very strong. I'm very proud as a Black woman being out here representing myself and representing us and our culture. I make sure that I do everything that I can to be the best representation possible every time that I step on the court and even off the court.

So I can't speak on how she felt about it. That's something that you're going to have to ask her. I didn't take it in that way, but also, you know, that has been a stigma in our community of being not educated and all of the things when it's the furthest thing from the truth.

The thing that I'm the most proud of is that I let my racquet talk. Because ultimately, I'm the one here sitting in front of you guys moving on to the next round, getting the next check, moving on, being able to still be here and speak to you guys, and that's what's the most important. She's packed up and she's gone. I'm here, and that's the only thing that matters.

So whether it had racial undertones or not, that's something she can speak on. The only thing that I'm worried about right now is continuing to move forward through this tournament. I know that I'm a fantastic tennis player, and I know that I have a lot of things that I want to accomplish, and this is another stepping stone. It's another brick that I'm laying on my foundation or on my road to greatness.

So ultimately, you know, whatever it is that it is, I don't take any offense to it, but I'm really proud of the way that I handled myself. More than anything, if my son sees that, I know that he'll be proud of me as well, and that's what matters the most.