Ostapenko, Already Down, First Seeded Player Eliminated at Wimbledon
Jelena Ostapenko's run at Wimbledon ended before it even truly began. Facing Sonay Kartal on Monday in the first round, the Latvian, seeded 20th, failed to gain the upper hand against the British player.
Lacking confidence in recent weeks, Ostapenko led 5-3 in the first set before her opponent reeled off four consecutive games to take the opener. The 2017 Roland-Garros champion responded well, comfortably winning the second set. However, the 28-year-old couldn't capitalize in the decider.
After trailing 5-0, Ostapenko showed a brief flicker of pride by securing one break back, but the deficit proved too great to overcome. Ultimately, Kartal, ranked 51st in the world, triumphed in three sets (7-5, 2-6, 6-2 in 1h56) and advanced to the second round, where she will face Viktoriya Tomova, who benefited from Ons Jabeur's withdrawal.
Despite firing 37 winners, Ostapenko couldn't turn the tide and exits the women's singles tournament prematurely. She managed just one grass-court win this season—last week in the first round of the WTA 250 event in Eastbourne against… Kartal (6-3, 7-6).
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