Upper Austria Ladies Linz, Austria

[72] Jelena Ostapenko (LAT) vs. [110] Cori Gauff (USA)

Twenty-two-year-old Jelena Ostapenko knows all about having the spotlight on your career. A little over two years ago, just after she turned twenty, the Latvian won her first title at Roland Garros. Fast forward to two years later and she now had to play against the youngest player ranked in the top seven hundred of the WTA tour. Gauff has stolen the spotlight since her brilliant performance earlier this year at Wimbledon.

From Lucky Loser To Winner

Gauff’s story at this tournament is even more exciting; she lost in the final round of qualifying and only got into the main draw when the sixth seed, Maria Sakkari, withdrew from the tournament due to a right wrist injury. This is perhaps the luckiest break of her career because she grabbed this opportunity with both hands to secure her first career WTA singles title.

Coco Gauff Fearless At The Start

There was no evidence of nerves early in the match as the young American broke the Latvian in her first service game and quickly backed up the break by holding her own serve. The serving advantage went to Gauff, no surprise there as it is well known that Ostapenko struggles with her serve. One break was all Gauff needed to secure the first set and apply the pressure to her opponent. The momentum was securely on the teenage American’s side.

Yet, that was not the case as it was the American who succumbed to the pressure early in the second set. This is all new for the teenager and with no reference point it was probably to be expected that the nerves became a factor. After protecting her serve so dominantly in the first set, Gauff struggled on serve and was broken three times to lose the second set.

Third Set Decided Coco Gauff’s Fate

It came down to confidence and serve in the third set and it all seemed to be going well for Gauff, who regained her focus and form to get off to a 5-0 lead. However, Ostapenko was not ready to relinquish the opportunity to win her first title since she won the French Open in 2017 and she broke the American when she wobbled a little as she served for the match at 5-1 up. Unfortunately for the Latvian, it was only a small delay of the inevitable as Gauff immediately broke back to win 6-3, 1-6, 6-2.

SOURCE OF IMAGES: serveandrally originals