Jelena Ostapenka is eyeing glory at the Stuttgart Open after beating Emma Navarro to progress to the quarter-final and finally hit some form in a singles competition.
The Latvian performer reached the final of the Qatar Open way back in February but has otherwise been on a horrendous run during 2025.
Ostapenka plays a lot of doubles matches too, and there is a sense that perhaps her doubles exploits have led to her mind being somewhat elsewhere when it comes to her singles form.
Beating a player such as Navarro, however, should give her bags of confidence and heading into the French Open, she will want to go on a strong run, having lost in the first round at the Australian Open.
Next up for Ostapenko is a chance to face the world number two, Iga Swiatek in a match that she will need to be bang up for if she’s to claim anything from against a clay-court specialist.
Jelena Ostapenko shares what she’s going to do against Iga Swiatek
It’s fair to say that tennis players revealing their hand when it comes to a game plan has become the norm, with Stefanos Tsitsipas sharing his plan for coming up against Arthur Fils.
Now Ostapenko has done the same and after beating Navarro 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 in the last 16, there is a big quarter-final to look forward to for the player currently ranked as the number 24 on the WTA Tour.
After beating the American, she said in her press conference: “I just have to do what I have to do: Stay aggressive and play my game. I’m always ready for a battle against great players. I mean, she’s a great player. Yeah, I just need to focus more on what I have to do.”
Ostapenko head to head vs Swiatek
Well, Swiatek might be the clear favourite for this one, given her lofty world ranking and her unflappable mentality on the clay but there is definitely something to give Ostapenko hope.
The two players have met on five occasions, with the Latvian running out the winner on all five occasions, leaving Swiatek awaiting a very first professional victory over her opponent.
| Year | Tournament | Round | Winner | Score |
| 2019 | Nature Valley Classic | L32 | Ostapenko | 6-0, 6-2 |
| 2021 | Indian Wells | L16 | Ostapenko | 6-4, 6-3 |
| 2022 | Dubai | L16 | Ostapenko | 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 |
| 2023 | US Open | L16 | Ostapenko | 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 |
| 2025 | Doha | SF | Ostapenko | 6-3, 6-1 |
The biggest of her five wins came at the US Open in 2023 when Ostapenko sent Swiatek packing at the last 16 stage when the Polish player was ranked as the best player in world tennis.
Other wins have followed since then and the player will go into this one convinced that she can continue her fine run of form against Swiatek and edge into the last four.
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