“Grass isn’t her favorite surface,” Jelena Ostapenko claims she predicted a difficult match for Iga Swiatek against Yulia Putintseva

The ever-dominant Iga Swiatek has still not found her rhythm on grass courts.

“Grass isn’t her favorite surface,” Jelena Ostapenko claims she predicted a difficult match for Iga Swiatek against Yulia Putintseva

Jelena Ostapenko (in circle) and Iga Swiatek (via Imago)

Former French Open champion Jelena Ostapenko defeated Yulia Putintseva 6-2, 6-3 to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals on Monday. The 27-year-old Latvian won her only Grand Slam title at the French Open in 2017. In this match, she broke Putintseva five times. Ostapenko hit 29 winners but also made 26 unforced errors.

Jelena Ostapenko may not have expected to face Putintseva in the Round of 16 at Wimbledon. However, in her press conference, she suggested that she anticipated Iga Swiatek’s unbeaten run would end at Wimbledon.

YouTube video
I honestly knew it wasn’t going to be an easy match. Especially because Yulia won Birmingham. She can be dangerous on grass. She can play different tennis. She can slice and do different things. I knew it wouldn’t be an easy match for Iga. Especially because grass isn’t her favorite surface.
Jelena Ostapenko said in her post-match interview

In this match, Ostapenko broke Putintseva five times. She hit 29 winners but also made 26 unforced errors.

FS Video

Iga Swiatek was stunned by Yulia Puntintseva in the Wimbledon third round

World No. 1 Iga Swiatek was knocked out of Wimbledon on Saturday after a surprising third-round loss to Kazakhstan’s Yulia Putintseva. This defeat ended her impressive 21-match winning streak.

Iga Swiatek Wimbledon
Iga Swiatek at Wimbledon (via Imago)

Swiatek had been unbeaten for nearly three months, including a dominant French Open win. She started strong, taking the first set 6-3. However, world No. 35 fought back, winning the next two sets 6-1, 6-2.

After the match, the top seed acknowledged the need for changes in her Wimbledon preparations. She mentioned her best Wimbledon result was reaching the quarterfinals in 2023 and recognized the importance of patience and accepting mistakes on grass.

Putintseva, on the other hand, has had a stellar grasscourt season. She won her first grass title in Birmingham last month and now made it to the second week of Wimbledon for the first time.

In case you missed it: