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Jelena Ostapenko had some hilarious reactions to her doubles partner Lyudmyla Kichenok’s hand injury during the semifinals of the WTA Finals.
Ostapenko and Kichenok squared off against the Czech pair of Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova, losing the match 7-6(5), 6-2.
Kichenok was wounded during the match and a finger on her left hand could be seen bleeding rather profusely. While a medic was treating the wound, her doubles partner Ostapenko made her feelings known by her hilarious facial expressions, which had the commentators in splits.
A look at Jelena Ostapenko and Lyudmyla Kichenok’s 2022 season
In 2022, Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia and Lyudmyla Kichenkok of Ukraine played a full season together for the first time.
They competed in 15 tournaments, emerging victorious at the Cincinnati Masters and the Birmingham Classic. They advanced to the semifinals at two Grand Slams — the French Open and Wimbledon. They also made their top-10 debut in August and qualified for the WTA Finals.
The duo put together a 10-match winning streak on grass that included winning at Birmingham, reaching the Eastbourne final (which they conceded via a walkover due to Ostapenko’s injury), and a run to the Wimbledon semifinals.
“I just feel great support playing with her. I know in key moments she can play her best tennis and that gives me extra confidence as well. That's the key,” said Lyudmyla Kichenok about playing with Jelena Ostapenko in an interview with WTA Insider.
“We're really good friends off the court and I think that chemistry and connection helps us in tough moments. We always spend good times off the court and on the court we feel more good with each other and relaxed in a good way. I think that helps us in the key moments,” said Ostapenko.
The Latvian also enjoyed a successful singles season. She won the Dubai Tennis Championships by defeating Veronika Kudermetova 6-0, 6-4. Other notable results included reaching the final at the Eastbourne International and the Korea Open as well as the semifinals at St. Petersburg and Qatar.
Ostapenko's win-loss record for the season stands at 31-19.
