"Going into this Grand Slam, Townsend had nowhere near the star power or the name recognition of fellow Americans Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula, and she is not even seeded in singles play. Yet the 29-year-old, who is half of the top-ranked women's doubles team in the world and was No 1 as a junior player, has become one of the biggest stories of the tournament through no fault of her own."
"Townsend hopes the attention around the confrontation and her calling attention to it can be a positive for the US Open and tennis in general. If I'm someone who can draw huge crowds into the stadiums as a name that can bring people to come and buy tickets and support the game, then that's a crown that I'll gladly wear, Townsend said."
Taylor Townsend upset fifth-seeded Mirra Andreeva 7-5, 6-2 in prime time at Arthur Ashe Stadium after a large doubles crowd cheered her on. Townsend had a face-to-face confrontation with Jelena Ostapenko after their second-round match, saying Ostapenko told her she had no class and no education. Townsend is unseeded in singles but is half of the top-ranked women's doubles team and was a former junior world No. 1. Townsend framed the episode as about representation and drawing crowds and said she hopes the attention can have a positive effect on the sport. She was asked whether the comments had racial undertones.
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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