"I suffered a heat stroke": Jelena Ostapenko shares reason behind retirement from Wuhan Open first-round

Latvia’s Jelena Ostapenko has explained the reasons behind her retirement from the Wuhan Open. The 28-year-old was one of the big-name players to retire midway through the first-round match of the ongoing WTA 1000 event in Wuhan.

Ostapenko lost the first set against Sorana Cirstea without winning a single game. In the second game, she was trailing by 2-1 when she decided to call it a day and as a result, Cirstea managed to cement her spot in the next round.

After making that decision, Ostapenko explained the reason behind it in a post on her official Instagram account. She stated that she suffered a heat stroke, which led her to make that decision. Ostapenko also expressed optimism that she will be able to return to the same competition next year in a ‘stronger’ manner.

“It was a tough day,” wrote Ostapenko. “I suffered a heat stroke today. Thank you China for the atmosphere, emotions and incredible energy from the crowd. I am truly sorry that I had to finish the match this way. Thank you to all my Chinese fans. I will be back stronger next year.”

Ostapenko was not the first player to have struggled in challenging conditions in China this year. In the same competition, Britain’s Emma Raducanu was also forced to retire from her first-round match against America’s Ann Li. In men’s tennis during the Shanghai Masters, top-seed and world number two Italy’s Jannik Sinner was forced to retire from his third-round match because of having too many cramps.

It was the first time this year that Ostapenko retired from a singles category match in 2025. With that result, Ostapenko’s season has gone from bad to worse where she has suffered 19 defeats in 37 matches with a win percentage of less than 50. She has now lost seven out of the last 10 matches in different competitions starting from Wimbledon.

In the third Grand Slam of the year, Ostapenko lost to Britain’s Sonay Kartal in the first round with a score of 7-5, 2-6, 6-2. After that, Ostapenko featured in the Canada Open, where, after beating Renata Zarazua of Mexico in the first round, she lost to Japan’s Naomi Osaka in the second round in straight sets with a score of 6-2, 6-4.

Ostapenko then featured in the Cincinnati Open, where she was given a walkover in her first match against Camila Osorio. In the second match, she lost to Lucia Bronzetti of Italy with a score of 1-6, 6-3, 6-4. At the US Open, Ostapenko managed to win the first-round match against China’s Xiyu Wang in straight sets with a score of 6-4, 6-3. Her journey, however, ended in the competition in the second round as she lost to America’s Taylor Townsend in straight sets with a score of 7-5, 6-1.

After that, Ostapenko suffered a defeat in her first match of the Guadalajara Open to Marina Stakusic with a score of 6-4, 6-7, 6-2. Before coming to Wuhan, Ostapenko featured in the China Open, where she was given a bye in the first round. In the second round match, she suffered a shocking defeat to Priscilla Hon in straight sets with a score of 6-3, 6-2.