"For me that's still not enough": Jelena Ostapenko issues warning to rival players on WTA tour ahead of Stuttgart Open final

Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko has issued a warning to other players, claiming that she has not yet played her best tennis. The 27-year-old cemented her spot in the final of the ongoing Stuttgart Open after beating Ekaterina Alexandrova in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 6-4.

During her road to the final, she defeated the world number two, Poland’s Iga Swiatek, for the sixth consecutive time in the quarterfinals with a score of 6-3, 3-6, 6-2. In the final, Ostapenko will face the reigning world number one Aryna Sabalenka, who cemented her spot in the last two after beating Italy’s Jasmine Paolini in the semifinal in straight sets with a score of 7-5, 6-4.

Ostapenko has been quoted in a report where she issued a warning to other players on the tour, claiming that she has not yet played her best tennis. She stated that she is a ‘super-perfectionist’ and at times, playing ‘unbelievable’ is not good enough for her.

"You know I just get really mad that I lose that ball coz I'm super competitive, I wanna win every single ball. I know that's not possible, but you know I'm just a perfectionist, so sometimes it's good and sometimes it's bad, but I try to get all these negative emotions out and then I'm ready for the next point,” she said. "I don't think it will ever happen because I'm a super-perfectionist, you know sometimes I play unbelievable, and for me that's still not enough you know hopefully I will just not be too hard with myself, I will, how you say, be proud of myself anyways."

Ostapenko’s meeting with Sabalenka in the final of the Stuttgart Open will be the fourth time these two players have clashed in professional tennis. In the previous three meetings, the reigning world number one has a clear edge where she won on every occasion.