Jelena Ostapenko, 25, says her Stuttgart performance against Emma Raducanu reminded her of “the fearless tennis” she played in 2017. In 2017, Ostapenko won her first Grand Slam at the French Open and she also won a WTA event in Seoul Also in 2017, Ostapenko made her first Wimbledon quarterfinal.
At the time, Ostapenko was tipped to win multiple Grand Slam titles and reach the world No 1. But since then, Ostapenko has won just three WTA titles and has been to just two Grand Slam quarterfinals. On Tuesday, Ostapenko gave Raducanu a brutal 6-2 6-1 loss.
Ostapenko reminded herself of the tennis she played in 2017
“I was kind of fearless. I was not thinking too much. I felt today a little bit that way. I was just going for the shots. Even if I was missing, I was, like, It’s fine, I will still go for the shots.
Probably [need] to bring back this fearlessness, but of course it’s tougher when you get older. You start to think more and of course you want to play better and more consistently,” Ostapenko said, via the WTA website. After a breakthrough 2017 season, Ostapenko seemingly started to analyze some things more and that led to some doubts.
But when Ostapenko is aggressive and confident in her game, that’s when she is at her absolute best. “It can sound a bit strange but I felt like I was stepping back a little bit too much in the years when I wasn’t playing well.
When I’m stepping into the court and I play fearless like at the French Open and try to hit winners — of course, not crazy, but play a bit smarter — that’s what’s working well,” Ostapenko added. Meanwhile, Ostapenko and Raducanu played against each other for the first time.
Going into the match, there was the hype surrounding the meeting since both Ostapenko and Raducanu were Grand Slam champions. In the end, Ostapenko routinely handled the business against Raducanu.
