Fans remain divided over Jelena Ostapenko receiving support from a fitness trainer while she continues to face racism allegations following her US Open controversy with Taylor Townsend. The Latvian star has been under scrutiny from many in the tennis world for her comments about Townsend.World No. 139 Townsend got the better of 25th seed Ostapenko in the second round of the US Open. The Latvian clashed with the American at the net while shaking hands after the match. According to Townsend, Ostapenko told her she had "no class" and "no education."Later, Ostapenko revealed she was upset over Townsend not apologizing after winning a let cord point and skipping traditional warm-up routines. Many in the tennis world found racial undertones in Ostapenko's comments, although she completely denied it.More recently, her trainer, Ernest Wiggins II, co-founder of Atlas Speed Training LLC, expressed his support for the Latvian star, saying that he felt Ostapenko’s apology statement "shows humility." The entrepreneur, who is Black, stood by her amid the backlash.Fans, however, felt that he was the "Black friend" who was supporting her to avoid racism allegations."So just so we are clear this is the equivalent of “i have a Black friend so i can’t be racist,”" one fan wrote.Uptown Oracle @UptownOracle646LINK@draqueline So just so we are clear this is the equivalent of “i have a Black friend so i can’t be racist.”"Pathetic response from someone trying to cover bs behavior," another fan wrote."There's always some corny black dude who will defend a racist, especially when it's a white woman..." a third fan wrote.Some fans, on the other hand, defended Ostapenko and her trainer."Brave man. His comment section is blowing up. 💥" one fan wrote.Jess 🍵 @jessica4steinLINKBrave man. His comment section is blowing up. 💥"It’s crazy to see how Americans live in their own bubble, still think that Ostapenko is racist because she argued with a Black woman (hellooo she argued with anyone on the tour) and complain about a Black man standing by her side? 😭" another fan wrote."Those racists claims always involve American players.and the biggest victim of all, Osaka! You never hear any drama involving Monfils, Arthur fils, pethi perricard, mboko…everyone always has to walk on eggshells with USA players, anything you say can be misconstrued at any time!" yet another fan wrote.Aryna Sabalenka and Naomi Osaka spoke about the Jelena Ostapenko-Taylor Townsend US Open controversyJelena Ostapenko and Taylor Townsend argue after their US Open match | GettyAs the dust settled on the heated exchange between Jelena Ostapenko and Taylor Townsend, many of tennis’s influential figures spoke out, including Aryna Sabalenka and Naomi Osaka.World No. 1 Sabalenka revealed she reached out to Ostapenko after the match. During a US Open press conference, she said:"I spoke to Jelena after the match. Well, I have to say that she's nice. She just sometimes can lose control. She has some things in life to face & some struggles. So, I was just trying to help her."Sabalenka acknowledged her emotional volatility and hoped that the Latvian would one day figure it out and deal with these things better.Meanwhile, Osaka was more blunt in her assessment. Expressing support for Townsend, she condemned Ostapenko's choice of words:"I think obviously it's one of the worst things that you can say to a black tennis player in a majority white sport. And granted I know Taylor and I know how hard she's worked and I know how smart she is. So, she's the furthest thing from uneducated or anything like that."Regarding on-court matters, after quashing Ostapenko's US Open hopes, Townsend got the better of fifth seed Mirra Andreeva and reached her first US Open fourth round in singles. However, she was defeated by Barbora Krejcikova in a thrilling match-up.