In a highly anticipated match at the US Open, Iga Swiatek, the top-seeded player from Poland, was defeated by Jelena Ostapenko, the 20th seed from Latvia.
The match took place during Sunday’s night session in New York, where Ostapenko delivered an inspired performance, hitting an impressive 31 winners with her fearless and aggressive approach.
Swiatek, who won the title in 2020, lost 3-6 6-3 6-1, unable to cope with Ostapenko’s powerful hitting.
The 26-year-old Latvian won her sole major at the 2017 French Open and will now face American sixth seed Coco Gauff in the quarterfinals.
Swiatek’s loss also means that her 75-week streak as the women’s world number one has come to an end, with Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka set to replace her after the US Open.
Swiatek had lost all three of her previous meetings against Ostapenko, and the pair had not played since February 2022.
However, Swiatek had been on a transformational 37-match winning run, which led to her taking over at the top of the WTA rankings, a position she has held onto since.
Throughout the match, Ostapenko was able to maintain her aggression, hitting powerful returns that hurried Swiatek and forced her into making costly errors.
Swiatek tried to mount a comeback in the second set after falling an early break behind but was unable to rescue the situation.
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In the third set, Ostapenko’s powerful hitting proved too much for Swiatek, who became completely overwhelmed as she quickly fell behind 5-0.
Although Swiatek avoided a rare 6-0 scoreline, Ostapenko was determined to secure victory and fittingly did so with another inch-perfect forehand winner to seal a break to love.
After the match, Ostapenko praised Swiatek’s play but noted that she had to play her own game and be aggressive to come out on top.
Meanwhile, Swiatek expressed surprise at how her level changed so drastically and how she felt no control suddenly.
Overall, it was an intriguing match-up between two talented players, but it was Ostapenko’s fearless and aggressive approach that ultimately proved to be the difference.
