Jelena Ostapenko hit out at ‘disrespectful’ comments made by an opposition coach during her doubles match at the US Open. The 2017 French Open champion was left angered by the mentor of the Australian-Taiwanese pair Maya Joint and Chan Hao-Ching and asked an official to intervene.

The 29-year-old is said to have spoken out against the coach’s antics where it was alleged they sarcastically praised shots in Chinese while clapping and shouting after mistakes. Hsieh Su-wei, Ostapenko’s doubles partner, translated as the Latvian didn’t speak Chinese, and during the changeover, the behaviour was called out to the chair umpire.

Ostapenko asked for the presence of a Chinese translator, telling the umpire: “They do this because they know they cannot beat us,” describing it as “very disrespectful”. It didn’t prove to have an impact on the result too much, with Ostapenko and Hsieh racing into the next round with a straight-sets win.

But the Latvian couldn’t resist one more parting shot as she roared towards the opposing box. However, the drama didn’t end there as Hsieh and Chan didn’t shake hands at the net at the end of the encounter.

The pair will return to the court and play on the Louis Armstrong Stadium on Tuesday to face Elise Mertens and Diana Schnaider. But for Ostapenko, Monday’s squabble was the latest in a line of spats on the tour.

During last year’s US Open, she sparked a frenzy when she engaged in an argument with Taylor Townsend. The American was accused of having “no class” and “no education” in a confrontation during their singles second round encounter, with the Latvian exiting the ocmpetition.

Townsend had a stroke of luck when a net cord went in her favour before Ostapenko accused her of not apologising. Ostapenko later apologised for her part in the incident.

She said: “Hi all – I wanted to apologise for some of the things I said during my second-round singles match. English is not my native language, so when I said education I was speaking only about what I believe as tennis etiquette.

“But I understand how the words used could have offended many people beyond the tennis court. I appreciate the support as I continue to learn and grow as a person and a tennis player. Goodbye New York and I look forward to being back next year.”