It was the shock of all shocks. It sent waves through the tennis universe. Simona Halep was up 6-4, 3-0 in the French Open Final over newcomer Jelena Ostapenko. Ostapenko had just turned 20 years old, and before the tournament, had only reached the Third Round of a major once in her life, let alone the Final. And, it seemed like the moment was too big for her. Her groundstrokes were flying on her, and it seemed she had lost control of her game.
But, tennis, a largely mental sport, has a way of twisting and turning, with the unexpected often coming through. Ostapenko cracked some groundstrokes, Halep's doubts surrounding her ability to win a major resurfaced, and Ostapenko stormed back to win 12 of the next 16 games, winning her maiden major 4-6, 6-4, 6-3.
This seemed like it could be the beginning of the Ostapenko era in women's tennis. Here was a young champion, with a huge game, who wasn't afraid of the moment and was ready to rise to whatever challenge came her way. Jelena could have crumbled against Halep, where seemingly everything was against her. She could have mailed it in the First Round, where Louisa Chirico had her on the ropes, winning the first set. She could have broken down in the Fourth Round, when Stosur took the first set 6-2. Or the Quarterfinals, when Wozniacki won the first set.
But, Ostapenko hung in there, and fought. And it was this fighting spirit, along with her huge game, where you just sensed something special was brewing for her future in tennis. You got the feeling she might be someone to look out for, when in the Final of a Premier 5 tournament, one of the biggest in women's tennis, she won the first set of the Final in Doha over Carla Suarez Navarro 6-1. And her Final of the Premier event in Charleston showed she could play on clay. However, even so, the tennis world largely was shocked, not that Ostapenko won a major, but that she did so at such a young age, and against a player of the caliber of Halep.
But, largely, that was the last the tennis world really saw Ostapenko at the top of the game. Yes, she won a title later that year in Seoul, squeezing out a tight match over Beatriz Haddad Maia. And, she did win a Premier doubles title with Gabriela Dabrowski in Doha early last year, but given the high bar she set winning a major, her results since the French Open title have largely felt underwhelming.
In singles, Ostapenko has only made one Final since her win in Seoul, a straight sets loss to Sloane Stephens in Miami (although it is a Premier Mandatory event) last year. But, given that we are now approaching two years since her French Open crown, two singles Finals with one title in an International event to show for it seems like a disappointment.
This isn't to say that Ostapenko never plays well, she did make the Semifinals of Wimbledon last year, it's just to say that there is very little consistency in her results, even within a tournament. Since that Wimbledon Semifinals run last year, for instance, she has only won two matches in a row during a tournament once, making the Third Round of the US Open last year before a straight sets loss to Maria Sharapova. Beyond those two wins in a row, the only time she has won two matches in a row is when she won a three setter over Rebecca Sramkova in Fed Cup and then won another three setter over a slumping Miheala Buzarnescu in the First Round of Doha. In non-Fed Cup play, she has three wins.
So, why write this article now? Well, Ostapenko just lost a three setter to Marketa Vondrousova, a 19 year old rising star who might, in a few years, if her game continues to develop, overshadow Ostapenko. Of course, Jelena still has her major, but if she does not start winning consistently soon, she will soon be thought of as a one-major-wonder, where her title is seen largely as a fluke. Yes, she still would have her title, of course, but the expectations of winning future majors would be put on the likes of players like Vondrousova, as opposed to Ostapenko
So, what are changes to Ostapenko's game that could be implemented? First, her serve can be improved. It is hard for Jelena to really gain control of points with her serve, as it is largely a weaker serve that sits up into the strike zone of her opponents. If she were able to gain some extra firepower on her serve, it would allow her to gain control of more points, which would ease some pressure off of her potent groundstrokes, giving her easier winners to hit and less pressure on her groundstrokes to be at a high level in order to win.
Speaking of Ostapenko's groundstrokes, I think a little more margin would do her a lot of good. I'm not saying that her groundstrokes should be a slow and loopy all of a sudden, but really focusing on adding a touch more topspin to her game, and making her targets slightly more inside of the court as opposed to trained on the line, would add an extra safety element to her game that I don't think she has. Because, even when she wins, her game just feels very erratic. Take her 6-1, 0-6, 6-0 win over Kristina Mladenovic in St. Petersburg this year, for example. Even within a match, Ostapenko's game can come-and-go.
Adding a little more margin to her groundstrokes would also help to eliminate the shock losses that Ostapenko has, such as her loss to Kristina Kucova in Hong Kong last year or her loss to Monica Niculescu in Shenzhen. Taking slightly fewer risks on the return of serve may also help Ostapenko out. When a player misses the return of serve, that player is not even giving the opponent a chance to produce an unforced error. While she might not hit as many return winners/forced errors (or winners/forced errors in general), I believe that she would be giving herself a better chance to win a greater percentage of the return points she plays. Again, I'm not suggesting that she start moonballing, but rather, that she plays just slightly higher percentage tennis.
It could be the power of expectations that is causing Ostapenko difficulty. Consistently, for maiden major winners, continuing success after a maiden major win is very difficult. A new, almost-suffocating attention is bestowed upon you, and you have to either deal with it, or let the pressure get to your head. And, it clearly takes a while to figure out.
So, perhaps, Jelena Ostapenko, who is still so young, at 21 years of age, is just taking a longer time figuring out her place in this tennis universe. With the margins already so low with her game, perhaps the mental pressure of being a major champion, of going into matches on big courts with the expectation to win, of being out on tour with the pressure of winning as a means of supporting herself, can contribute to Ostapenko's erratic play.
Everyone is different. And it's obviously too early to write Ostapenko off. She is 21 years old, a lot of people her age are either in college or just starting out in the workforce. She still has plenty of time in tennis to make her mark. Look at Venus Williams, who at 38 years old, just beat Petra Kvitova yesterday at Indian Wells. Ostapenko is clearly still trying to figure out her game, and the expectations that weigh on her game, given that she has won a major.
Yes, Jelena Ostapenko is currently 80th in the race to the Year End Championships, but the season is still so young. And, after all, she is still 22nd in the live rankings.
Jelena Ostapenko will be fine, just give her some time.
