The drama has continued at the US Open after another incident unfolded at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
It has been an eventful first week in New York to say the least, beginning with Daniil Medvedev’s huge outburst at the umpire in his first round exit.
The controversy was certainly not done there, with Jelena Ostapenko and Taylor Townsend having a huge altercation after their match which has sparked reaction from even beyond usual tennis fans.
This drama has now continued into the doubles draw, with American WTA player Peyton Stearns being called ‘disrespectful’ after her match.
Photo by Robert Prange/Getty ImagesPeyton Stearns responds after being branded ‘disrespectful’ by Anna Kalinskaya
It has been a disappointing North American hard court swing in singles for Stearns, who lost to Venus Williams at the Washington Open.
Following her second round loss in the US Open singles event, Stearns set her focus on playing doubles with her compatriot McCartney Kessler.
In their first ever match together, Stearns and Kessler beat the Madrid Open champions Anna Kalinskaya and Sorana Cirstea, 7-5 6-4.
The main talking point of the match actually came at the handshake, when there appeared to be a discussion between these four players.
During this discussion, Kalinskaya was heard saying to Stearns, “I expected a little respect. I haven’t seen you apologize even once.”
As they went to shake the umpire’s hand, the discussion continued between Stearns and Kalinskaya before they ended up bumping fists.
After the situation began to gain some traction on social media, Stearns clarified exactly what happened and explained that it was a misunderstanding between the players.
She wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter), “Guys chill, she didn’t see me apologize when I had hit some forehands at her, never hit her, but I put my hand up and she wasn’t looking. Cleared the air at the end and all is good sealed with a fist bump.”
guys chill, she didn’t see me apologize when I had hit some forehands at her, never hit her, but I put my hand up & she wasn’t looking. Cleared the air at the end and all is good 🤝🏼 sealed w a fist bump https://t.co/7eUJgrOnzB
— Peyton Stearns (@peyton_stearns) August 30, 2025
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Why has there been so much drama at the US Open this year?
While all Grand Slams provide drama due to what is at stake for all these players, the US Open this year appears to have had more than most.
When this was broached to Naomi Osaka in her press conference, she suggested that it could be related to the time in the season after being asked about Stefanos Tsitsipas’ confrontation with Daniel Altmaier.
“I don’t know what the tea is with Tsitsipas so I’m not going to say anything but I don’t know,” said Osaka. “I feel like not calling everyone name out name by name, but Medvedev have had like a couple moments here that are kind of iconic.
“So, yeah, I feel like the people here might enjoy a show, but I think people everywhere enjoy a show. So, I don’t know if it’s just the part of the season where everyone’s like tired and irritated or something, I mean, for me, I think New York brings out my best behaviour. So, I don’t know what everyone else is doing!”
The first week of the 2025 US Open is nearly over, but there is likely to be even more drama to come as the stakes rise even higher.
Osaka will be part of that second week, with a blockbuster fourth round match coming up against Coco Gauff.