2023 US Open Match Preview: Iga Swiatek v Jelena Ostapenko

Sunday, 03 September 2023 at 19:46

As the second week begins, Iga Swiatek will aim to continue her march to potentially back-to-back US Open titles, but her next opponent could yet be her toughest in New York.

That being fellow former Roland Garros champion, Jelena Ostapenko who will take on the World Number One in the Last 16.

In our Match Preview, we look at their respective tournaments so far, Head to Head and other talking points in the top tie this evening.

Scintillating Swiatek barely troubled en route

For the World Number One, it has been a fairly simple route through with Daria Saville likely the only player to give her any trouble.

The Aussie who returned only recently from ACL surgery lost 6-3, 6-4 to Swiatek and despite losing in straight sets was her sternest test to date.

Kaja Juvan was a battle which she was either going to fold or flourish in with the Slovenian being her best friend on tour and she thrashed her 6-0, 6-1 after also having the mirroring score against Rebecca Peterson.

In recent months, doubts have swelled about the dominance of Swiatek with Aryna Sabalenka troubling her at the top. But what better stage than a Grand Slam to prove she is still the best for a reason.

Ostapenko hot on the heels

Next up is Jelena Ostapenko who came into the US Open with early losses to Jennifer Brady and Elena Rybakina in Montreal and Cincinnati and despite riding her luck at times in her opening rounds has set up this intriguing tie.

All three of her ties have gone the maximum of three sets. This included her opener against Jasmine Paolini which was won 6-2, 4-6, 6-1. Before, she only narrowly defeated Elina Avanesyan who was one of the emerging talents from the clay court season. Bernarda Pera followed.

In which Ostapenko lost the opening set but came back to win it comfortably. Starting to rise up the rankings steadily, it is very much a battle of one player who flourished post Roland Garros win and one who failed to deliver but wants to again.

Alarming Head to Head record

But while most will see Swiatek as an overwhelming favourite, there is the Head to Head Record which sees Ostapenko unbeaten against Swiatek.

This run stretches all the way back to 2019 in Birmingham albeit on a surface which Swiatek has struggled on in the past. But she has also defeated her as recently as Dubai last year on hard.

A Grand Slam is of course a different task entirely, but could hold the key for an outside pick when it comes to this match.

Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief

Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.

Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.

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