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Jelena Ostapenko kicked off her 2024 season at the Brisbane International, and her first kit for the new season has caught the attention of fans.
Jelena Ostapenko is seeded No. 3 at the WTA 500 tournament and faced Italy's Camila Giorgi in the first round on February 3. The Latvian had little trouble dispatching Giorgi 6-1, 6-4 in 1 hour and 20 minutes.
The former Roland Garros champion also played her first doubles contest of the year with regular partner Lyudmyla Kichenok at Brisbane. The No. 5 seeds faced the Russian duo of Anna Kalinskaya and Ekaterina Alexandrova and came back from a set down to emerge victorious 5-7, 7-5, 13-11.
Apart from her performances on the court, Ostapenko's outfit drew mixed reactions from tennis fans.
The Latvian is sponsored by a brand from her home country, DK ONE, and her white and light purple kit was in line with the other colorful and flamboyant dresses she has worn in her past tournaments.
The 26-year-old's bright yellow outfit from the 2023 US Open had previously gone viral on social media.
Many fans liked the white and purple dress she is sporting in Brisbane and hailed the World No. 12 as a trendsetter once again. Other urged brands like ASICS and Yonex to draw inspiration from her and DK ONE and make better kits for other players.
However, some fans disagreed and slammed the Latvian for her fashion choices.
"Wtaf she is playing against someone who is the queeen of style and that’s what she where’s," one fan wrote.
"Waistcoat and scalloped skirt in lavender. Another year of Penko farshun innovation," wrote another fan.
"ASICS, Yonex and ON should learn from her b4 designing sportswear. Lol," joked one fan.
"When they get jelena ostapenko’s outfits does she just ask for whatever looks as worst as possible? It’s impressive #Brisbanetennis," one fan posted on X.
Here are some more fan reactions to Jelena Ostapenko's first kit of 2024:
Jelena Ostapenko to face Karolina Pliskova in 3R at Brisbane International
Jelena Ostapenko will lock horns with Karolina Pliskova in the third round of the 2024 Brisbane International on January 4. The two players have faced each other on the WTA Tour 10 times. Their first matchup came at the 2016 Western & Southern Open, which the Czech won.
Their head-to-head record is tied at 5-5, with Ostapenko winning the last contest between the two at the 2023 Western & Southern Open.
Karolina Pliskova, the winner of the last edition of the Brisbane International in 2020, comes into the third-round match after bettering four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka.
In the clash of former World No. 1's, Pliskova outlasted Osaka, who is coming back to the tour after her maternity break, in three laboring sets 3-6, 6-7 (4), 4-6.
