No ring, but a trophy: Kichenok postpones wedding, then wins US Open women's doubles with Ostapenko
Jelena Ostapenko, of Latvia, left, and Lyudmyla KIchenok, of Ukraine, wave to the crowd after defeating Kristina Mladenovic, of France, and Zhang Shuai, of China, in the women's doubles final of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in New York. Credit: AP/Kirsty Wigglesworth
NEW YORK — Lyudmyla Kichenok was supposed to get married this week to Jelena Ostapenko's coach.
A run to the U.S. Open women's doubles championship forced a change of plans.
Kichenok and Ostapenko won the title Friday for their first major as a team, beating Kristina Mladenovic and Zhang Shuai 6-4, 6-3.
Kichenok said she and Stas Khmarskiy were engaged more than a year ago. When they arrived for the tournament, they made plans for the wedding to be in New York.
“We were figuring out all the things, where we can do that. And, yeah, he found a spot here and he just booked an appointment for Wednesday,” Kichenok said. “He told me that. I was like, ‘OK, yeah, let’s go.’”
Instead, Kichenok and Ostapenko were playing their semifinal match Wednesday.
“I think it's a good excuse to postpone it a bit,” Ostapenko said during the trophy ceremony.
Jelena Ostapenko, of Latvia, right, hugs Lyudmyla KIchenok, of Ukraine, after defeating Kristina Mladenovic, of France, and Zhang Shuai, of China, in the women's doubles final of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in New York. Credit: AP/Kirsty Wigglesworth
Kichenok and Ostapenko, the No. 7 seeds, began the season with a loss in the Australian Open final. They were too good in Flushing Meadows, where they didn't drop a set and won $750,000.
It was the fifth title together overall for Ostapenko, a Latvian who won the 2017 French Open in singles, and Kichenok, who dedicated the victory to her home country of Ukraine.
“They are fighting really hard for our freedom right now and I just hope I can give them some encouragement,” Kichenok said, “and my heart is with them.”
Kichenok and Ostapenko raced to a 4-1 lead before Mladenovic and Zhang fought back to tie it at 4-all. Ostapenko and Kichenok regained the lead when Ostapenko finally held serve during a 22-point game that lasted more than 12 minutes, and they won the set in the next game when Zhang double-faulted.
Kristina Mladenovic, of France, and Zhang Shuai, of China, high five after a point against Jelena Ostapenko, of Latvia, and Lyudmyla KIchenok, of Ukraine, during the women's doubles final of the U.S. Open tennis championships, Friday, Sept. 6, 2024, in New York. Credit: AP/Kirsty Wigglesworth
After falling behind 2-0 in the second, Kichenok and Ostapenko surged back as Arthur Ashe Stadium began to fill up with fans waiting for the first men's semifinal between No. 1 Jannik Sinner and No. 25 Jack Draper.
Mladenovic and Zhang fought off three match points — the last when a video review confirmed that Kichenok had hit the ball twice on an attempted volley — before the champions wrapped it up on their next chance.
Mladenovic has won six Grand Slam doubles titles but fell to 0-3 in the U.S. Open final.
“But I still like the place. It’s OK,” she joked afterward.
Zhang was looking for her second trophy in New York, having teamed with Sam Stosur for the 2021 title. She and Mladenovic shared $375,000.
“For me the biggest motivation is I wanted to put our name on this trophy,” Zhang said. “But we will fight next time.”
As for her wedding, Kichenok only knew that it would now be “somewhere, somehow.”
“No plan yet,” she said. “Maybe Las Vegas or in Europe somewhere.”
