Aryna Sabalenka makes desperate plea about Porsche car despite losing to Jelena Ostapenko in the Stuttgart final

Jelena Ostapenko had never beaten Aryna Sabalenka before, until the Stuttgart Open finals.

Aryna Sabalenka makes desperate plea about Porsche car despite losing to Jelena Ostapenko in the Stuttgart final

Aryna Sabalenka, Jelena Ostapenko (images via Porsche Tennis)

Aryna Sabalenka is well known for her sense of humor and the funny speeches that she makes during tournament finals. The World No. 1 was aiming to clinch her third clay court title at the 2025 Stuttgart Open. However, she was outclassed by Jelena Ostapenko in straight sets in the final. Prior to this, she had never been defeated by Ostapenko, even on clay. 

Sabalenka reached her first Stuttgart Open finals in 2021, where she lost to Ashleigh Barty. In 2022 and 2023, Sabalenka was defeated by Iga Swiatek in the finals. After losing the final for the fourth time, Sabalenka hilariously remarked that the only way she can get the beautiful Porsche car (awarded to the winner) is by purchasing it, and she is glad that she can afford it. She congratulated Ostapenko for her victory and hoped that she would enjoy driving the Macan Turbo Electric. 

YouTube video

I want to congratulate Jelena & her team. Enjoy driving this beautiful car. I’m glad I can afford this car… After this final, I’m going to order one because this is the only way for me.

Aryna Sabalenka said during her runner-up speech

The Latvian set the tone of the match with a break of serve in the opening game and kept the pressure on throughout. Sabalenka clung on to a pair of tight service games to avoid going down a double break, then unleashed on return to level at 4-4. Ostapenko responded with controlled aggression to break again for 5-4, eventually clinching the first set. 

The second set saw Ostapenko’s fierce domination. Sabalenka was broken again in the first game of the second set before dropping serve on a further two occasions in an uncharacteristically error-strewn performance. Ostapenko reeled off the last five games in a row and sealed the victory 6-4, 6-1 with a perfect forehand return winner. She hit an impressive 21 winners and made just eight unforced errors throughout the match. 

Jelena Ostapenko defeated both the World No. 1 and World No. 2 at Stuttgart Open

Jelena Ostapenko defeated both the World No. 1 and World No. 2 on her way to clinching the Stuttgart Open title. She defeated World No. 2 Iga Swiatek in the quarterfinals, in their first meeting on clay. Though clay is two-time Stuttgart champion Swiatek’s forte, Ostapenko once again proved that defeating Swiatek is her forte. 

Jelena Ostapenko Iga Swiatek Stuttgart Open
Jelena Ostapenko, Iga Swiatek (images via X)

The Latvian now boasts an astounding 6-0 head-to-head record over Swiatek, having defeated her on every surface. It is perhaps a very unique rivalry in tennis history where a much lower-ranked player has a dominating record over a top-3-ranked player and multiple-time Grand Slam champion. 

Jelena Ostapenko clinches her second clay court title

The Stuttgart Open final was Jelena Ostapenko’s first clay-court final since she clinched the 2017 Roland Garros title. She had defeated Simona Halep in that final, becoming the first Latvian to win a Grand Slam singles title. This is also Ostapenko’s second final of the 2025 season, after losing to Amanda Aminisova at the Qatar Open. With this victory at Stuttgart, Ostapenko has clinched her ninth WTA singles title and has moved up to World No. 18.

Jelena Ostapenko Stuttgart Open 2025
Jelena Ostapenko (image via Porsche Tennis)

Meanwhile, it marked the fifth final of the season for Aryna Sabalenka. She had won two of those finals, at the Brisbane International and Miami Open. Although the Belarusian is a hard court specialist, she is making impressive strides on clay too, a surface where she has won two of her 19 singles titles. She hopes to extend her domination on the surface and win the Roland Garros too.